Jack of All Trades
by HarpLeaf
Summary: A horrible accident catapults Glen Foray from Earth and into the World of Remnant. Utterly lost and alone, he struggles to find friendship and start a life from scratch. As he is continually pulled into dangerous situations, he learns that being a "jack of all trades, master of none" may not be enough to get him - or those he comes to care for- out alive. A realistic SI/OC story.
1. Chapter 1

Last minute packing never works out well. It wasn't anything particularly new to me; I had packed for everything from overnight stays at a relative's house all the way to an eleven day backpacking trip. Still, when I hurried I had a nasty tendency to forget things.

"Glen! Your plane leaves at twelve thirty!"

"I know, mom!" I called back down as I gathered my suitcase in my arms, flying down the stairs as I tried not to overbalance. Unfortunately, when you carry the suitcase in front of you like an absolute moron, things tend to happen. That 'thing' was my foot slipping off a step. In my own defense, I couldn't see where my feet were because of the suitcase. Then again, you could also argue that I caused the situation in the first place.

With a little luck and a lot of coordination, I managed to catch myself on one knee before I completed the journey like a tumbleweed.

"Glen! Are you okay?" cried my mom, rushing over to try and take the suitcase off my hands.

"Mom, it's fine. Just slipped a little." I grinned, holding the suitcase out of her reach before finally setting foot on the cold hardwood floor. "Besides, you've seen my rugby games. I take harder hits than that all the time."

The mere mention of my school sponsored sport brought forth a sigh of consternation. My mom looked up into my face, our hazel eyes connecting.

"You know I don't like that. You'll get hurt, or a concussion, and it'll affect your future."

"I'm fine, mom," I chuckled, taking up an exaggerated bodybuilder pose. "I'm a big, strong young lad. The people who need to worry are those on the opposite team. No concussions, no major injuries."

"Except for the two broken fingers," she laughed lightly, knocking down my arm.

"Those weren't even broken playing rugby! Besides, they're not _major_ injuries," I protested valiantly.

"You had to have surgery to get one back in the right place, all because of your stress inducing obsession with running around and over things and climbing everything in sight."

"I did have to have surgery," I conceded. My mother sighed once more, pushing her shoulder length blond hair behind her ear. "Now, I need to get moving, or I'm going to miss that flight."

"Yes. Yes, go!" She said, waving me on.

I grabbed the suitcase and extended the handle, dragging it through the front hall and out the door. For a summer morning in Houston it wasn't too bad. That is to say it was a mere ninety degrees and very, _very_ humid. The sun beat down on me as I loaded the suitcase into my painfully old maroon Corolla. I swear I saw the rear suspension sink as I slammed the hood shut, another chip of paint falling off.

Hustling back inside for my carry-on, I slung the hiking pack over my shoulder.

"Luke! Shelby! I'm leaving! I yelled out upstairs. Scant seconds later, there was a commotion above my head. _Thump thump thump thump thumpathumpathump._ My two younger siblings came tearing down the stairs, my sister flinging herself at me first. I braced and caught her as she wrapped her arms around me.

"Bye Glenny! I'll miss you!" Shelby said, as she continued to try and crush me.

"Bye Shelby. Gahhh, you're getting big. I'll miss you too."

Just as Shelby removed herself, Luke came in and gave me a hug before we exchanged our secret handshake.

 _Clasp. Switch. Fly it up. Slide out, snap, fistbump- boom!_

I looked fondly at my little brother, ruffling his hair as he squawked in protest.

"Love you Luke. I'm gonna miss you bro," I said.

"Me too, broski. Do some awesome stuff! Dive really deep-"

"No! No. Stay safe, Glen. Don't do any of that!" my mother quickly interjected. I turned and spoke to my brother in a stage whisper.

"Don't worry Luke. I'll just jump out of the plane when we're passing overhead and swan dive into the ocean and go, oh I don't know, two hundred feet right down-"

"Glen! It's not funny. Don't even joke about that," she reprimanded. I chuckled, straightening out from where I had bent over to talk to Luke.

"I'll be safe mom. Don't worry." A brief moment of silence was held until I broke it by turning and walking back out the door. "Goodbye guys! Love you!"

"Bye! Love you too!" chorused Luke and Shelby, before dashing off to whatever they had been doing before. I slung the bag in the back of the vehicle, clambering in and turning over the engine. At least this two and a half thousand dollar junk pile ran, drove, and had AC. Air conditioning was absolutely mission critical down here.

"Be safe Glen." My mom waved as I shifted the car into reverse. "I miss you already." I pulled out slowly, mindful that the majority of accidents occur going backwards. And if you know anything about the insurance premiums of a seventeen year old male…you do not need an accident to bump those rates up.

"Miss you too!" I called out the open window, waving back. I fiddled with the shifter, finally managing to get it to clunk into drive before heading off to the highway. As I drove carefully towards George Bush Intercontinental, I sat in a curious state of having the sun still roast me through the windshield while cool air blasted from the vents. Simultaneously baked and frozen; the eternal pain of the summer. Even so, I grinned manically and tapped a beat on the steering wheel, whistling a tune. I couldn't wait to take to the skies. I loved aircraft and air travel, so that in itself was like a gift. But getting to spend a weeks in the Florida Keys with some good friends to do some snorkeling and scuba diving? It was like having Fort Knox opened to me.

Leaving my car in the Eco Park lot, I slipped the scrap of paper into my wallet. Heaven forbid I forget where it was parked, right? All I had to do now was drop off my bags and... spend twenty minutes waiting in line at the security checkpoint fiddling with my phone. I got through no problem, though I didn't particularly enjoy the minor annoyance of having to wait so long or retie my tennis shoes. First world problems, am I right? I'm on the way to get on a plane to Florida to scuba dive with friends, and airport security is getting me down.

 _Okay, okay… Gate C22, United N27733. Boarding begins at 12:05. Let's go!_

My phone buzzed from where I had stuffed it in my backpack, and I dug it out to check the message.

 **DAD:** Hey Glen, I wish I could have been there to send you off in person. Stay safe and I know you are going to have an awesome time. Wish I was going with you! I love you very much.

I tapped out a quick reply.

 **GLEN:** Thanks dad! Wish you were coming too. I'll take pics of some fish for you :)

Thank goodness for autocorrect sticking in those apostrophes. Otherwise I'd be typing words like 'ill' instead of 'I'll', 'well' instead of 'we'll', and 'whore' instead of 'who're'. As you can see, punctuation is fairly important. My impromptu English lecture was shortly cut off by pangs in my abdominal region. I suppose metabolism never takes a day off. The time on my iPhone told me it was only 11: 45… I had time for a quick sandwich. And chips and a drink and – well, I think the point has been made. Food is always a good thing.

The bistro quickly changed my mind. Dear lord, this was highway robbery. Not on the same level as a movie theatre robbery, mind you, but the prices were still steep. A little panini and bottled smoothie would have to do me for now. My stomach had eyes on the pastry section, but that was unfortunately still a definite no-no. I was on a budget for this trip.

 _Pitiful. Just pitiful,_ I thought. _I paid seven bucks for this piece of junk? I can cook stuff a million times better at home and for a fraction of the price. How on earth - right. We're all stuck in a terminal so they can charge whatever they want._

My four and a half dollar bottled smoothie buoyed my culinary spirit, though that was only by virtue of prepackaging. I plugged an earbud into my phone and leaned back, sipping on a dull red concoction while I watched aircraft take off and land on the runways outside the window. I could do this all day. There was just a little kid inside of me that hadn't lost its fascination and wonder with flight.

"This is the final boarding call for Gate C22, direct service to Miami International. Again, this is the final boarding call for Gate C22, direct service to Miami International. The gate will be closed in five minutes and will not be reopened."

The booming voice of an airline representative jolted me out of my pleasant reverie. I hustled aboard the plane, pausing only to get my ticket scanned. With a sigh of relief I slipped into my seat in row twenty eight, glad to be aboard and on my way.

 _Ping._

I pulled out my phone to see a message from one of my friends who had arrived in Florida early.

 **Harrison:** Hey boyo, when r u going to get here?

 **Glen:** Just got on the flight, probably 2:30 ish? 2:45?

 **Harrison:** When do i need to pick yuo up tho

 **Glen:** *you

 **Glen:** Just be there by 3 or so

 **Harrison:** Hahaha

 **Harrison:** The living spellcheck strikes again

 **Harrison:** U will b lucky if im there 2 pick u up

I had to chuckle out loud at that. Despite being an excellent English student, Harrison was atrocious when it came to texting. Grammar, spelling, punctuation - it all went right out the window. Of course, we gave him no end of grief about that. Maybe it was because he kept lording his essay scores over us… I'm just saying.

"Sir, could you please put your bag under the seat in front of you?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Of course." The flight attendant nodded her head in thanks as I shuffled my hiking backpack to its proper location with my foot.

"Also be sure to put your cellular device in airplane mode before we begin taxiing, please."

"I will. Thanks," I said, giving a little smile that the woman returned, before she stalked off to make sure no one was reclining or had flipped out a tray table. Another _ping_ and vibration quickly drew my gaze back to the phone.

 **Harrison:** Raining pretty hard rn, supposed 2 clear up 2nite tho

 **Glen:** Glad to hear it. Wouldn't want to have the whole trip spoiled by mother nature :p

 **Harrison:** Blake said he wants it 2 stop raining so he can go pick up chicks

 **Glen:** As if XD

 **Glen:** Has he ever even been sucessful?

 **Harrison:** Not 2 my knowledge

 **Harrison:** *successful

 **Glen:** Screw you man. I thought you couldn't spell? :p

 **Harrison:** I thought u could

 **Glen:** Touche XD

 **Glen:** Going to take off soon, have to go. See you in a bit :)

 **Harrison:** Kk, cya at 3

A smile tugged at my lips once more as I tucked the phone into my pocket. My body came close to vibrating with excitement; I could not wait to see all the guys again, though I knew for sure Harrison was going to razz me about this slip up. Still, I could bear the forthcoming jabs if only for the fantastic trip and companionship.

Rolling away from the gate, the plane taxied all the way to the end of the runway. The soft whine of the engines built to a roaring crescendo, and the jolt of acceleration stirred bubbles of excitement in my gut. The plane lifted into the air, and as the journey sank into the monotony of modern air travel I plugged into my phone. Slowly I let acapella tones lull me into closing my eyes, before drifting to sleep.

What I woke to was the most terrifying sound in the world. The agonized screech of metal letting go of its place, screaming as it tries to prevent cracks from spreading. And failing. My ears registered a large thud as the air pressure inside the cabin finally exploded outward, shearing the tail section off.

For a brief, surreal second, I saw sky where there used to be a chair. Then, with a violent motion akin to being thrown by a giant hand, I was sucked out of my seat and into the open air.

The blue sky at thirty thousand feet was freezing. Each breath came in achingly painful gasps as I tumbled towards the clouds. Despite the impossibility of my predicament, I found myself coolly and rationally considering my options.

 _Okay. I'm falling fast; around one hundred and ten miles an hour, I think. Terminal velocity. Skydivers can lower that a little - on my stomach, X position._

I tried to gain control, but immediately spun out. It took a few times but I finally managed to hold a position where I was simply falling straight down. Something kept trying to haul my right leg up and flip me around, but with some adjustments and significant muscle power I could barely hold myself straight in the air.

A new problem now presented itself; the hundred mile an hour wind tore at my vulnerable eyes, preventing me from seeing more than a blur. Still, I was slowing myself. Improving my chances of survival; what little I had, anyway.

Mist enveloped me, incredibly cold and clammy as I hit the cloud layer. Buffeting winds and currents pulled me around, threatening to unbalance me.

 _What do I do? How can I survive? I have to survive I-_

"Gaaahh!" I screamed in desperation as a particularly strong gust sent me tumbling. I had no reference point in this sea of grey, nothing to help me recover. Head over heels I tumbled, being ripped every which way as up became down and left became right.

 _Ohgodohgodohgod_

My veneer of rational thought began to fade as the shreds of hope began to slip through my fingers. Hysteria grabbed hold as deep mist howled about me.

 _I can't see I can't recover oh please_

Grey, grey, grey, grey, blue, grey, blue-

A stream of curses left my mouth as I fought with everything I had to right myself once more, ending up face to face with a vast expanse of turbid blue water. It took a second to identify what I was looking at as my mind attempted to recover.

 _Water. Water - the ocean!_ In my frayed mental state, my mind began pulling up hysterical suggestions. _In case of parachute failure or failure to open fully, try and aim for a body of water. Well, check that off. What was it? Swan dive into the ocean?... No, damn it!_

But it was too late. I had too little altitude left and was falling far too fast. Even as I struggled to do anything to delay the inevitable, to live, my mind started forming last thoughts.

 _I'm sorry mom and dad. Luke, Shelby - I wish I wasn't about to leave you. I love you guys. Please -_

A great weight overtook me, and blackness was all I knew.

I was cold and something was slowly pulling me down deeper. My right ankle stung like rubbing alcohol had been poured on an open wound.

 _I'm under water. I'm under - ALIVE!_ My mind screamed, motoring all my limbs immediately to try and claw my way to the surface. My lungs were already burning as I felt one of my hands break the surface of the water. With a strength born of desperation, I kicked and hauled myself to daylight to take in my first spluttering breath.

No air entered my lungs.

There was a pillar right next to me, a concrete structure covered in barnacles that I latched onto immediately so I wouldn't have to keep struggling.

 _I'm out of the water, why can't I breath?!_ My heartbeat began hammering inside my head, my chest on fire. I managed to clear some of the water out of my mouth and throat and finally took in a wheezing breath of life. _Laryngospasm. Just had a laryngospasm. Oh god. I'm alive._

The pillar I was hanging off of was supporting a dock that was just out of my reach. Workers bustled around shipping containers, moving a load off a boat and into a storage yard.

 _I'm in a shipping yard. There are people to help me._

"Help," I croaked, throat still not recovered. "Help me. Help. Help! Help me!" I was able to see a few faces turn in confusion, before seeing me barely hanging from a pillar. Thudding steps came pounding down the dock seconds later, and voices shouted out words I had difficulty making out. Several hands grabbed onto me and hauled me onto the dock as I finally allowed myself to relax.

"Kid. Kid, you okay?"

"Where the hell did you come from?"

"Crash," I wheezed. "Survived a crash."

Gingerly unwrapping something from around my ankle, a bald worker shook his head. "Geez, kid. You need some medical attention." He hoisted a light grey bag up. "This your bag? One of the straps was snared around your ankles."

 _My bag almost killed me twice- in the air and in the water._

"Screw it," I yelled, trying to get up; to do what, I don't know. An irrational rage had sprung up in me at the sight of my hiking pack. "I hate that damn bag! I don't want to see it again!" The other worker held me down, preventing me from rising.

"Hey, kid. You're going to hurt yourself. We'll get you help. Just stay calm and keep talking to me, okay?"

I knew what he was doing. He was going to keep me talking to judge my mental state of consciousness, and to help stave off shock. At least it was nice to know someone had some basic medical training.

"Okay, okay," I gasped, trying to keep myself calm.

"What's your name, buddy?"

"Glen. I'm Glen Foray."

"Got any family?"

"Yeah, yeah. I do."

"Brothers or sisters?"

"Two. Well, one brother and one sister."

A golf cart looking vehicle pulled up, but it had three rows of seats. The two workers that had been with me from the start helped me into the cart.

"Hey Marv, get us to the clinic and step on it," The bearded worker said, gesturing to the guy driving the cart. A soft whirr punctuated the engine firing up as the vehicle turned and peeled back into the maze of crates.

"Ahhhhgg," I groaned, as pain started filtering into my system. My ankle was black and blue bruised with some raw scrapes, but what I didn't expect was the pain in my palms. I turned my shaking hands over slowly. "Oh hell, my hands are shredded," I said, wincing at the sight.

"Barnacles are pretty damn sharp kid," the worker chuckled without much humor. "Most all of us have been scraped up at one point or another. Now, you have two siblings?"

"Yeah, Luke and Shelby."

"And where do you all live?"

"Houston."

There was a sudden break in the flow of questions that caused me to glance over at the worker. His brow was furrowed, and one hand stroked his facial hair.

"Houston. Is that a small village? I haven't heard of it." Now it was my turn to start, frowning at him. How had he never heard of Houston?

"No, it's a pretty huge city. In Texas. You know where Texas is, right?" Another awkward silence.

"..No. No I don't." He turned back to the guy up front. "Quickly, Marv. I think he's losing clarity, or is delirious. I want to get him into the hands of medical staff quick-like, understand?"

"Gotcha Greg."

"I think I know where I live!" I protested, wincing as my hands throbbed once again.

"It's okay, kid. We'll get you some help." I wanted to protest more, but my hands started throbbing and burning something awful. Instead I just put my head down on my knees. I was alive. _Alive._ Relief sank over me. I could see my family again.

Half an hour later, I sat propped up in a hospital bed with bandages wound around my hands. A gel had been applied that smelled funny, but was supposed to prevent infection. Bandages also wrapped my gel covered ankle with the addition of a splint over top.

The door at the end of the small room opened and a uniformed officer came over, pulling a chair over to sit at the end of the bed.

"Okay. Glen Foray, correct?" He asked, looking at a file of papers.

"Yes, that's me."

"I'm Officer Brandeis of the VPD. I'd like to let you know that though we've had no reports of any missing airships, we've sent several boats out to look for debris and survivors. In the interest of a crash investigation, could you give me an explanation of what happened aboard your flight? Start from the beginning and don't leave out any details, even if you think they are insignificant.

"Well, I was aboard a United 737 going to Florida-" The officer held up a hand to cut me off, and squinted at me.

"A United seven thirty seven? What kind of airship is that?"

"Airship? It's not an airship," I frowned, annoyed. "Its an aircraft. The Boeing 737, one of the most popular commercial aircraft in the world. The plane I was on."

"A Boeing plane? But you said it was United just a second ago." Both of us were looking at the other like they had three heads.

"Yes. United is the carrier, the company that owns the 737, manufactured by Boeing." I spoke slowly like you would to a small child. The officer looked as if he had more questions than when I started, but I was just motioned to continue.

"Anyway, takeoff and climb out were pretty smooth.I didn't notice anything unusual. I fell asleep, but I woke up when the back of the plane blew out and sheared off the tail. The split happened right in front of my row. I was in row twenty eight I think. I was sucked out of the plane because my seatbelt wasn't on. I fell all the way down to the ocean from thirty five thousand feet or whatever we were cruising at and blacked out before I hit. I don't know how I survived, but I came to in the water by the docks where the workers found me."

"Okay," the officer muttered, drawing out the word in exasperation for some odd reason. Brandeis finished scribbling notes on his paper before looking up at me tiredly. "Is there any family we can get in touch with?"

"Yeah, my mom and dad. We live in Houston. Tell them I'm okay and they don't need to worry about me," I ed, feeling a pang of guilt. I really hoped my mom wouldn't freak out too badly. I didn't want her to feel so worried about me.

"A cell number, perhaps?" asked the officer. At least, that's what he must have said, because I swear I heard the word 'scroll' instead. I gave both my parents cell numbers to him, and my dad's work phone just in case. The officers eyebrows raised, but he didn't comment. He simply stood and marched back to the door before turning once more.

"Mister… Foray. You do realize that wasting police time is a criminal offense?"

"Yes, of course I do," I said in frustration. As if! The officer just left, closing the door behind him. I sat in silence, accompanied only by my own thoughts.

 _Insinuating that I'm making this up. Really? What a way to treat a possibly traumatized accident victim. I hope that some people survived that crash. I don't know how I did - by all rights I should be dead._ A shudder passed through me as I replayed the fall in my head, my own mortality more evident than it ever had been. _I suppose that this is the end of my Florida vacation. Really though, I'm just happy that I lived. I'll have to send word to the guys too-_

I was cut off once again as the door opened back up and Officer Brandeis marched back in.

"Okay Mister Foray, I tried to give you the benefit of the doubt, but I'm done with your BS. Three boat crews and several investigators

have had their time wasted by you. I-"

"Hold on, what?" I interjected. "What BS? What the hell are you on about?" The officer simply sat down in the chair and flipped open the file from earlier.

"I've done some fact checking, and almost everything you've said is invented. Made up. Not real."

"No no no," I fired back, feeling anger rise within me. "I've just survived an airplane accident I had no right to have survived. I'm afraid a hundred other people may have just _died_ in the same fashion I nearly did. I've been injured and I just want my parents to know I'm okay before they hear what happened. I've cooperated with everything you've asked and I've told nothing but the truth. So you tell me what the _hell_ you mean when you say I made all that up?" The officer just looked at me disappointedly.

"You've had your say? Good. Now it's my turn." He shuffled the papers and began. "Let's start with the basics of the accident, shall we?"

"Let's," I growled with gritted teeth.

"First, there is no airship carrier with the name 'United'. There is no airship manufacturer called 'Boeing', and certainly no seven thirty seven."

"The hell do you mean?" I burst out, unable to contain myself any longer. "Do people in this place live under a rock? What do you mean there isn't any of that?! I know there is! I was on one! On a 737! I know because I take out the safety card and read it every time out of force of habit! And it _clearly_ had the words 737 printed on it. What kind of ignorant-"

"Mister Foray - if that is even your name - I suggest you desist yelling at and insulting an officer and let me finish _my_ say. Do. You. Understand." There was a steel in Officer Brandeis' voice that shut me up momentarily. "Thank you. Now, you also have claimed to have fallen from thirty plus thousand feet when the accident happened. However there are no commercial airships that can fly that high, and even if there were there is a lack of sufficient oxygen at that altitude for human or faunus to survive."

"I damn well know that there is a lack of oxygen! That's why the aircraft cabins are _pressurized_ to an altitude of 8-10 thousand feet! So the passengers can breath! And virtually all commercial aircraft can operate at that height!" I swung out of bed and limped over to him. "Besides, I think I'd know how long it took me to fall - it wasn't a one and done, I was falling for several minutes; more than five at least at a guess. So what-"

"Silence!" ordered the cop, standing to meet me. "Furthermore there is no city, town, or ever street named either 'Houston' or 'Florida'! Not only that, but the numbers you gave me connect to no scroll; they aren't even properly formatted! Now, Glen Foray, I suggest that you drop this charade and tell me the truth!"

"I have been," I screamed back hysterically, feeling like a vice was crushing my chest. Someone was losing their mind and it very well could be me. "I think I'd know where I lived and grew up! My family is there! My family whose phone numbers I gave you! I.. I don't…" My mind began to shut down, simply overwhelmed.

"I've had enough of you, Mister Foray. I'm placing you under arrest for wasting of police time and resources." As the officer grabbed my arm and frog marched me out of the room, I followed mutely.

 _This can't - how - I don't know. What the hell is going on?_

 **A/N: This is my first go at writing a fanfiction, and it is a Self Insertion. I really want to make clear that I am going to stay as far away from making a Mary Sue as possible. I dislike the super-powered, nigh unbeatable OC's and SI's that you can find. Glen (or should I say me) is way far out of his depth and I want to make that clear. He is going to struggle horribly in this unfamiliar environment, but I think that the struggle keeps it far more real and entertaining than some god among men crushing every obstacle in his wake. I hope you enjoy, and please leave constructive criticism if you have any. Thanks for reading this far!**


	2. Chapter 2

Beacon Academy, the illustrious school for young hunters and huntresses. Perched on an idyllic cliffside above the city of Vale, the academy was an impressive sight. The sweeping avenues and elegant towers overlooking untamed wilds were the dream of every aspiring hunter. The centerpiece of this collection of buildings was Beacon Tower, home to the CCT and a clockwork office. High above the clouds in this intricate and beautiful environment sat one of Remnant's most powerful men; Professor Ozpin.

Ozpin watched the sun set over the mountains, back turned to Vale.

 _The light continually moves to push back the darkness and keep it from claiming any one part of Remnant for too long. What a beautiful image. The finality of a day come to a close, and the promise of a fresh start all in one movement._

It was a lost art, living in and appreciating each moment that passed you by. This skill was something that Ozpin was working to master for the betterment of himself. Not because he was avoiding the stack of paperwork that still needed to be filled out. Certainly not that.

As the light slipped from the skies and shadows slowly eclipsed the windows, the wizard took solace in a long draft of coffee from a supersized mug. Hot chocolate would have been preferred, but needs must. The caffeine would help keep him focused on the mundane task ahead. At one point this had been an exciting new endeavor to newly appointed Headmaster Ozpin, but as the years slipped by the vast amount of administrative detail required to bring in new students had lost its allure.

An almost imperceptible grunt escaped his lips as he settled back into his desk chair, tapping to bring up once more the set of records that had driven him to drink. In fact Ozpin had consumed so much coffee that his Headmistress, Glynda Goodwitch, had refused to continually refill his cup "even if it _is_ for the greater good, Ozpin." Efficiency had dropped tenfold since that moment, as it took several minutes to grab another cup from the teachers lounge.

 _Note to self: Install a coffee machine in the office._

The transcripts before him caused the wizard to take another deep draft. _Jaune Arc._ On first glance, the young man seemed to be a perfect candidate for the Academy. His transcripts painted the image of a young man of exceptional skill with sword and shield. He had a perfect twenty four to zero combat record in Signal Academy during his fourth year, and had also received top marks in all theory classes. Unfortunately the undoing of such an elaborate fake - and it was a fake - was that it was _too_ good.

Ozpin had received an application from one Yang Xiao-Long, also from Signal Academy. Miss Xiao-Long had been marked with the distinction of being the _only_ person in the academy to go undefeated in her fourth year, making Mister Arc's application stick out like a sore thumb. It didn't take very much nosing about to confirm who was lying, and who was telling the truth.

Jaune should have been removed from consideration right then and yet Ozpin found himself straying back to the application, unable to remove it. Submitted along with the transcripts were essay answers that intrigued Ozpin enough to go and visit the fraudster in person. Under the guise of simply catching up with Jaunes father, a famous hunter in his own right, the wizard was able to learn more of the boy himself. The young man was understandably nervous, but as he opened up Ozpin found the answers he received matched what had been written in the essays.

This impromptu questioning session also left Ozpin with a good impression of the young man's character. He was kindhearted, honest, loyal, hardworking, and passionate among other things; all of the traits that one looked for in a prospective student. There was clear evidence of the physical commitments as well. Jaune had a toned physique and calluses on his hands from working with his weapons often.

But he hadn't truly attended an academy, and was attempting to fake his way into the school. His actually combat skill was of an unknown quality and so was his knowledge. Despite all that Jaune Arc had going for him, it should have been enough to turn the young man away.

 _Is it really the correct decision to send him away though?_ mused Ozpin. _No doubt he would work hard once admitted, harder than many others accepted on their merits. If he did not however… he would be a liability. I will not admit a student who will simply be killed or injured in this line of work._

With a sigh Ozpin slipped off of his spectacles and rubbed at his eyes. Perhaps if he watched over Arc in the beginning, and gave him enough time to grow…

An unwelcome buzzing sounded through the office, tinny against the deep clank of the machinery overhead. An incoming call broke Ozpin's train of thought just as he was closing in on a solution. The Headmaster nearly declined the call sheerly out of frustration before reigning himself in with iron discipline.

 _It is hardly the fault of the caller after all,_ thought the white haired hunter.

"Hello? Headmaster?" A nasally voice filtered through the speakers. The voice itself belonged to none other than Inspector Jonathan Tanner, a prominent member of the Vale Police Department. Aside from being one of the few people on the force not cowed by the council, Ozpin had met the man several times and had found he respected the inspector more than the chief of police himself.

"I assume there is a good reason for you calling me so late, Inspector Tanner?" The wizard asked, managing to remove almost all annoyance from his voice.

"Yes, yes there is Professor Ozpin. I was hoping you could help me out with, ahh, something rather interesting. I have a young man in custody who's under arrest for wasting police time and trespassing on the Schnee Dust Company docks down in the port."

"Indeed?" Ozpin took a slow sip of coffee, leaning forward in his chair. To ask his help for such trivial offenses; this must be a very interesting case.

"Yes. This young man was found in the waters just off the docks, and claimed to have been the survivor of an-" there was a pause, and over the speakers came the sounds of shuffling paper. "An aircraft accident."

"Aircraft? Not airship?" Ozpin enquired sharply, cutting off Tanner before he could continue.

"Yes Professor. He was very adamant that it was an aircraft, not an airship." The headmaster was silent briefly, his mind running through thousands of possibilities a second.

"Interesting. Please continue, Inspector."

"Okay. Well, not only is there no evidence of any airship crashing, he also has delusions of what seem to be another world with different locations, technology, and culture. He believes that his world is real and has no idea about ours."

"But he isn't just delusional or insane, otherwise this wouldn't be brought up."

"No. You see Oz…" The elder of the two cleared his throat slightly. "Professor Ozpin, I mean. Anyway, he had a bag with him. In the bag are a variety of items not manufactured by anyone on Remnant, and some are too complex for anyone to have put together themselves. These items seem to corroborate his story, impossible as it may be. Besides, when he was being questioned, the boy seemed sane. He appeared intelligent and levelheaded. He even had quick and detailed responses to all the questions we asked about his world with some stories to boot. If everything he said wasn't so blatantly wrong, I'd say he was telling the truth. You just can't make up this kind of stuff."

"Hmmm." Ozpin once again sipped on his coffee, savoring the taste even if it was lukewarm by now. The caffeine helped him to think anyhow. The man in question rubbed the bridge of his nose, considering the limited information before him. A thousand possibilities generated earlier were checked and cross-checked before being whittled down. Quickly only a handful of options remained before even those were gone.

"Ozpin?" came the tentative voice of Inspector Tanner, afraid of breaking the silence that had descended. "You still there?" The wizard ignored the distraction as he mulled two possibilities over in his mind. _Was it really possible, after all these years -_ "Because, ahh, everyone else involved is on me pretty hard to stop dragging my feet and send such and open and shut case through, get him to a shrink or institution, so on and so forth. Something's just not right though. I hoped that you might be able to back me up… lay these doubts to rest..." Tanner's voice trailed off and his plea hung in the air. Then, just as the inspector was about to ask again, Ozpin snapped to a decision.

"Inspector Tanner, I will be there in less than an hour. I want to meet this young man in person, understood?"

"I- Yes! Yes I do. Thank you so much sir!"

"I would also like you to forward all transcripts, images and other information you may have to my scroll so I can be fully informed when I arrive."

"O-Of course Professor! Thank you again!"

"Of course, Tanner. I will see you soon." Ozpin terminated the call, sliding on his glasses. This could be insanity or it could be something else. It would be so simple to dismiss this case as the story of a deluded teen that just happened to be close to legend. A ridiculous legend. Yet Ozpin was used to dealing in fairy tales, and ones that all too often turned out to be real.

 _After all, every story has to start somewhere in truth, even if it is blown out of proportion later._ The old man shook his head, grabbing his mug and cane before striding towards the elevators. _Travelers from another universe indeed… just one last thing to do._

Ozpin stopped only once on the way to the bullhead platforms. There, in the teachers lounge, he filled his supersized mug to the brim with coffee. He had a sneaking suspicion that he was going to need all of it.

Shortly thereafter, Ozpin sat in a rather nondescript police room, staring at the suspect in question through the glass.

 **Description: Male. 6' 0". 183 lbs. Med. length brown hair parted right. Brown eyes. Pale complexion w/ scattered freckles. Wearing sneakers, black jeans, and maroon hoodie with white undershirt. Suspect currently has abrasions and bruising on right ankle, and lacerated palms and fingers.**

The boy fit the description perfectly save for the injuries - though the wrappings on his hands and bandage trailing from the bottom of the pants seemed to be evidence enough of their existence. As Ozpin continued staring unwaveringly, the young man's wandering eyes drifted over where the headmaster sat as if he could sense a presence.

 _Glen Foray. Are you telling the truth?_

That was the crux of the matter indeed. Ozpin wasn't sure what the answer was, but he was determined to find out. In a single motion he stood, collecting his cup and cane. Sitting here wasn't going to solve the problem. The wizard needed more information, and he knew just where to find it.

* * *

I hated the sensation of being watched. A wall length window with mirrored panes was off to my left, and I could feel someone's eyes burning into me. The rest of the room looked like a stereotypical interrogation room. The floor was grey concrete. The walls were grey concrete. The ceiling had grey pipes spiderwebbed across it, and the steel doors were painted grey. My chair and the desk in front of me was - you guessed it - grey. The one way window was the only break to the monotony of the room. How sad was that? I mean, come on. Maybe let the graffiti perps get it out of their system on the walls, liven the place up a bit. Add a sofa, a soda machine, maybe a shag carpet too… Perhaps if you get the criminals comfy enough they'd just tell you what's what. Kill 'em with kindness, as it were.

 _Or alternatively, you could make the room as boring as possible and pray that by the time a policeman enters to ask questions the suspect will be so starved of variety they will beg to leave. Or they have fallen into a coma. Could looking at grey long enough make you colorblind?_

Possibly this was a good cop/bad cop routine. You get the good room, you get the bad room. Then switch.

If I sound somewhat nonsensical, it's probably because I was. After being driven up to the police station, I had been locked in this interrogation room. A weasel-faced investigator had come in and questioned me on the variety of items found in my backpack, of greatest interest being my ruined iPhone and the disposable waterproof camera.

 _"What kind of relic is this, mister Foray?"_

 _"A camera. A waterproof, disposable camera. The GoPro didn't have a case that was rated to go deep enough, and the rest of the cameras that could were pretty pricey. So, go low tech for low money."_

 _"Why not use a scroll? And why did it need to be waterproof?"_

 _"Uhhh… because I was going diving? I've told you before. In the Florida Keys. And what good would a scroll be? This isn't Ancient Egypt."_

 _"Mister Foray. This would be so much easier if you would just drop the delusions and explain yourself..."_

And that about summed up how _that_ had gone. No one believed a word I said, and if I tried to ask any questions back I got vague answers or none at all. Several different policemen rotated through, trying different tactics. Eventually I got the sense that the investigators stopped thinking I had done it intentionally and instead began to treat me like a mentally disturbed, deluded young man. That, more than the cameras, the isolation, or the lack of privacy, got to me. It got to me deeply on some psychological level I had never even considered before.

I knew I wasn't making anything up. I couldn't; as much as I'd like to think I have an excellent imagination, not even the most over inflated ego could believe they were this good. I had too many memories, too many experiences, too much knowledge to have invented everything in my head. Yet no one believed a word that came out of my mouth. My knowledge was an inventive story. My name was a lie to them. My experiences, a lie. My home and my family, a _lie._ It was like the most sadistic joke ever; to turn the world against one man, and tell him that everything he is isn't true until he begins questioning it himself. After all what is more likely: that you're right and everyone is wrong, or that they are all correct?

 _If that was true though, if I made it all up - who am I?... I don't know. There is nothing real that makes me who I am. I would be in the most literal sense, a nobody. Is this why people with delusions can't be helped sometimes? They've lived in their own world so long that they'd rather stay there than face the painful reality?_

It was at this point, alone in my self-reflective thoughts, I began to feel truly terrified. _You can't be insane if you know you're insane, right?_ To be blunt, I wasn't so sure anymore. So instead of dwelling on how helpless and hopeless I was becoming I let my mind wander. I sang songs, shadowboxed, went through the multiplication tables, and made up silly ideas about interrogation rooms. Anything to keep myself occupied.

Fortunately, I would not have to occupy myself any longer. The grey door opened and a new figure strode through.

The man in question was a far cry from the officers and inspectors that I was used to seeing. I got the impression he was old due to a wild mop of silvery-white hair on his head, but his face had a timeless quality that made him hard to place. He wore a black three-piece suit with what appeared to be a green turtleneck underneath and had oddly shaped shaded spectacles on his nose. In one hand there was a mug giving the scent of coffee, and in the other a cane.

"You're not a cop," I blurted out, a little off balance from this man's strange attire. A singular eyebrow quirked upward, studying me with intense scrutiny.

"A very astute observation, Mister Foray. Or may I call you Glen?" The man's voice was very smooth and refined, just barely hinting at an accent.

"No one else does, so why break precedent?" This snappy comment brought only a slight chuckle from the man in front of me as he took a seat in the opposite chair.

"Very well, Mister Foray. As you wish. I am Headmaster Ozpin and it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Would you mind if I asked you a few questions?"

 _A headmaster? Like of a school? What business does he have talking to me?_

I eyed the silver haired teacher in front of me with an ever increasing level of suspicion.

"...Yes. I suppose I don't really have a choice, do I?"

"Good. Then let's get started. First, I would like you to draw me a map of the world."

Headmaster Ozpin pulled what appeared to be a slim metal bar out of his pocket that had a yellow diamond insignia in the center. It was about the size of a short comb, and didn't look particularly impressive.

 _How does he expect me to - woah!_

To my surprise the middle split and a see through screen popped out between them. A few seconds later Ozpin handed me a small tablet.

"You can draw on the scroll's screen using your finger," the teacher said, though his words bounced right off me.

 _Okay, this is so wickedly awesome! It's more compact than my iPhone, but it expands to a much larger size!_ I turned it back and forth in my hand, inspecting the see through screen.

"This is a scroll? This is so much better than what I imagined! Well, I say better, but different works too because to be honest I was envisioning a piece of paper that gets rolled up. What's the screen made out of?" I peered closer, looking for any seams. "Because it clearly collapses, but the screen is longer than the width of the two end pieces. How does it work?" I looked up to Headmaster Ozpin to see the man staring me down, fingers steepled before him.

"The map, if you would be so kind."

Right. I stuck out my index finger and began to draw an admittedly terrible map of the world. When I finished I looked over my final product. Alaska appeared to be a potato mashed on the head of Canada, I think Latin America connected to South America in the wrong place but I didn't know where the right place was, and I had just drawn a bunch of random small islands south of Japan and China. I was also pretty sure all of Korea was missing somewhere. Wasn't that just on the south side of Eastern China? Yeah it was. Remember how the Korean war went, Glen. F-86 Sabres weren't allowed to cross into Chinese Airspace - not officially, anyway. _Of course that's how you'd remember it, you geek. By referencing it to military aviation._ And Greenland was _definitely_ missing. Whoops. What do you really expect though? I wasn't fantastic at geography by any stretch of the imagination. I penciled in the missing areas, and showed the map to Ozpin.

"Hmm. And what is this world's name?"

"Earth."

The man studied the drawing for a few seconds, then handed it back. "Where were you traveling from?"

"Houston, Texas."

"Point out where that is please." I did so, making a dot where Houston was located in Texas. Or, as close as I could get it. My own drawing made it difficult to tell. "Where were you going?"

"Miami, Florida."

"Draw that too please," asked the silver haired teacher. I did so, putting a dot on the lower right side of Florida. "You traveled by air, correct?"

"Yes."

"In what kind of ship?"

"Not a ship, an aircraft," I corrected. "Ships go in water. Aircraft go, well, through the air." Ozpin leaned in, brows furrowing slightly. "I was on a Boeing 737 owned by United."

"Hmmm," hummed the headmaster. In the brief silence I found myself growing quite attached to the man in front of me. He was simply asking questions without telling me I was wrong. Ozpin was trying to understand.

 _To hell with if he's supposed to be in here or not. I need to convince Mr. Ozpin that I'm not making this up. He's the only one that's actually listening. And… and I need him to convince me I'm not crazy either._

"Hello? Mister Foray?" Ozpin's voice caused me to start, as I realized that I missed a question.

"I'm sorry, what? I was lost in thought for a second," I apologized.

"I asked you what you were going to do when you got there. To Florida, that is," the headmaster said, smiling as if used to such behavior.

"I was going to meet up with some friends and we were going to go scuba diving and snorkeling."

"Describe scuba diving to me." Oh boy. It had taken me a week of nightly two hour classes to get certified, and you had better believe that they were crammed full of information.

"Well, you have a tank on your back that holds highly compressed air. There's a one way valve that sends air through a tube to a regulator in your mouth when you breath in, and then another valve to let the air out on the exhale. This allows you to breath underwater for maybe an hour or more, depending on things like depth and how fast you breath. Basically, you just stay under a long time to look at fish and coral."

"Hmmm. And this is a recreational activity?"

"Yeah, more or less."

"Name some other recreational activities you participate in."

"Uhhh, I do rugby, I skateboard, I bike, I … uhh … do martial arts, and a little bit of parkour among other things. I think that's a recreational activity, right?" The headmaster gave me no indication either way. "Because that's what I'm going to go with." The silence dragged on, only interspersed by Ozpin raising his mug to take a drink. Finally after an agonizingly long time, he spoke again.

"What is your mother's name?"

"Judy?"

"That sounded like a question. Are you sure?"

"Yes, I just fail to see how all this pertains to-"

"What is this area called?" asked Ozpin, pointing to the northern part of Asia.

"Russia." The finger jumped immediately after the answer.

"Here?"

"Australia." The questions were flying thick and fast, nearly cutting into the end of my sentences. I barely had time to come up with a proper response to even the simplest questions.

"Here?"

"Chile, I think-"

"Who is your best friend?"

"Harrison, or Evan…"

"Middle name?"

"Of Harrison or Evan?"

"Yours."

"Oh. David."

"Largest creature on the planet?"

"Blue whale-"

"Two meanings for the word Grimm."

"Foreboding and … uhh, bleak."

"Deadliest animal?"

"Mosquito," I responded, confident in that answer. Silence fell once more as Ozpin's eyes bored into me. I got the impression that the man could see right through me, good and bad, truth and lies. A spring was being wound up inside as the seconds ticked onwards, threatening to burst and shrapnel in my gut. Finally, the headmaster spoke.

"I believe you, Mister Foray."

"...You do? You really do?"

"Indeed." Those few simple words washed over me, breathing life into my soul. Finally the floodgate holding my emotions back over the past hours was released, and tears began to track down my face slowly.

"Tha-" My voice caught slightly, and I paused to take in a gulp of air. "Thank you so much. Ohhh dear God, thank you." Tears continued to roll as I allowed myself the thought that my ordeal might be drawing to a close. Of course, it wouldn't be that simple. It couldn't be, right? No, of course not. The universe wasn't ready to just go, "Congratulations, you handled yourself fairly well! Go home and have a cookie." No, it went "You want a cookie? Okay, I'll kick you in the balls. Have fun kid." A few minutes later as I recovered and began to compose myself, Ozpin began to unravel me once again.

"Unfortunately Mister Foray, though I believe you came from this 'Earth', that is not where you find yourself now. You are in the World of Remnant." Ozpin's voice was dead serious, almost concerned, but I paid it no heed. Instead I began to laugh, wiping away tears.

"What, I'm not in Kansas any more?" I chuckled again at my own reference, sobering just slightly enough to continue. "I'm on my planet. I have to be."

"I'm afraid not."

 _Not on Earth. I have to be somewhere on Earth, right? After all, I can't be crazy. He doesn't think I'm insane._ A somewhat more sinister thought occurred to me. _Did I get rescued by a cult and they're indoctrinating me?_ Almost as soon as it came up, the idea was dismissed. I had seen docks, ships, and most of a town or city. I'm pretty sure the government - or at least the media - would have been aware of such a large settlement of fanatics. The longer I thought about it though, the more something was still horribly, horribly wrong. I couldn't come up with any logical reason for the behavior of the investigators, police, dock workers, or this Headmaster in front of me. There was nothing to be gained by them and everything to be lost if they were simply screwing with me.

"Headmaster Ozpin - according to you I'm on… Remnant?"

"The World of Remnant, correct."

"But I'm not crazy."

"I do not believe so, no." Ozpin tilted his head to one side, as if he was curious to see where I was headed with this repetitive line of questioning.

"Well, one of us has to be delusional. There's no other explanation," I said with a desperate finality, crossing my arms and slumping back in the hard chair.

"That's a very strong 'either or' position, Mister Foray. Why can it not be that we are both perfectly sane?"

"We can't! I came from Earth. Even with a vast amount of scientific study and equipment, we haven't been able to confirm any planet that would host life. There can not be a 'World of Remnant'. Now, even assuming there is such a planet and we haven't discovered it, how did I get here? I fell down somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico out of an aircraft and magically teleported here before I could become a pancake?" I snorted in derision. "I hardly think so."

"Yet here we sit," countered Ozpin, calmly drinking his coffee in the face of my tirade.

"One of us is off his rocker."

"And if we are both sound of mind, which I believe we are?"

"You're inducting me into some sort of cult." This time it was Headmaster Ozpin's turn to chuckle around his mug.

"Hardly likely."

"I don't necessarily disagree, but it's a possibility," I replied a little belligerent. Ozpin nodded, clearly humoring me.

"A possibility, yes. But if untrue…"

"Then…" I hesitated, the words thick in my mouth. "Then I'm dead."

"Dead? Then how could you be experiencing this?"

"Well, maybe my body ceased to function but I haven't experienced brain death. This could just be a world my mind is projecting until brain death occurs, and because of the difference in the perception of time that ten minutes or so could be days in my head."

"Anything else?" Ozpin enquired. I sighed and rolled my eyes.

"I could have been magically transported here."

"Now," Ozpin asked, "Let's start with the cult. How unlikely is that to have occurred?"

 _The odds that there is an entire city in Louisiana somewhere that no one has heard of or talks about, filled with fanatics who believe they are, quite literally, in their own little world. And they clearly trade with other places based on the docks and yet no one knows about them in any way and no outside influence is brought in. Japan almost did it_ , some part of my mind supplied. _Unfortunately Japan was still aware of the outside world, and the outside world was clearly aware of them. Besides, Japan didn't have to deal with the media of this day and age._

"Impossible," I finally admitted, feeling as if a lifeline to sanity was being snipped.

"Very well then. What about brain death?"

"It's a possibility…" I trailed off. "A good one, I think."

"But?" prompted Ozpin, sensing my hesitation.

"I... I don't think I have the ability to create a scenario like this, especially if my brain is in the process of dying. Nor do I realistically think there would be any chance of my brain still functioning in any capacity after such an impact."

"Very good." Somehow, Ozpin was getting me to destroy all my own arguments and it frustrated me. He was clearly pushing towards this 'magical teleportation theory' which was a definite impossibility.

"So one of us is insane! All we've done is go round robin and end back up where we started. What has this accomplished?" I burst out, the cold fingers of my possible insanity creeping up my back.

"Quite a lot, I think you will find. First of all, you believe that an insane man has the capability to invent all of this," asked Ozpin, gesturing around him, "When your mind couldn't generate it as it was dying?"

"I haven't actually invented all that much," I argued back. "Some docks, a city, cops, and a grey room. Hardly impressive."

"Indeed. Well, allow me to change that for you." Ozpin cleared the screen of the scroll before swiftly bringing up a map. "This is the World of Remnant." There was a large, central landmass that looked like a squashed 'U', and another land mass that appeared to be a winged dragon sitting on a rock. On the right there was a second dragon-like landmass, this time more snakelike and without means of flight. Lastly, up to the north lay a shield shaped country with a large lake in the center.

"This is the Kingdom of Vale," Ozpin said, narrating his finger's journey across the scene. My intrepid guide moved from the north-east side of the 'U' shape to the north-west. "Vacuo." The frozen shield to the north was next. "Atlas." Finally, the snakelike dragon to the east was touched. "And Mistral. These four kingdoms form a stronghold for the vast majority of human and faunus life on the planet."

"Faunus? And why only these four areas?"

"Yes, faunus. Human in nearly every aspect except for a singular animalistic trait."

"They are a separate race… of animal people?" I queried disbelievingly.

"Indeed. Would you like to see?" More images were brought up and passed to me.

 _A man with a cat tail… a girl with antlers? What?... those can't be real._ I scrolled through more and more photos before simply sliding the device back across the desk.

"As for why these are the most concentrated areas of the populace, it is because they are most easily defensible against the Creatures of Grimm."

"The Creatures of Grimm?" I asked weakly, wondering what could possibly be in store for me next.

"Indeed. Soulless embodiments of evil that attack human and faunus alike with impunity, determined to wipe us from the face of Remnant."

"You have to be joking…" Ozpin simply stared me down, causing me to squirm as the scroll was passed back.

 _What the hell. What the actual hell are those things?_

The creatures in question looked to be drawn from places even my nightmares had not dared to go. They were beasts of the darkest black, seeming to emanate an ominous mist from their bodies. White bone plating glimmered from faces and formed spikes and claws. Dull red eyes burned with a hatred that was felt even through the photograph. These were killing machines, pure and simple.

"T-those things exist? They really exist?" I stammered, horrified.

"Indeed. And it is my job to train the future Huntsmen and Huntresses that will defend the kingdoms from these beasts," Ozpin said, taking the scroll from my trembling grasp.

"S-so, you're a… or rather training… uhhh…" I searched for the word I wanted, mind still overcoming the shock it had just been presented. "You're training guardians of Remnant?"

"A rather apt description, I must say Mister Foray. Now, I could continue on. But having seen all this, do you still believe that you could create such a world in your mind?"

"I don't… I don't know. I don't think so, but… I just don't know."

"So, the only working theory we have left is..." I detected just a hint of smugness in the older man's voice, sparking something inside me.

"Is crap!" I cried out, though weaker than before. "You can't convince me that some teleportation during a near death scenario is more likely than the other three! As far as I'm concerned, it's not!" I frowned at Ozpin, but got no rise out of him. Instead the headmaster sipped on his cup of coffee contemplatively, if one can do such a thing.

"Hmmm. Well, Mister Foray, I believe that we are done here. You are not insane, and the trespassing and wasting police time can be easily be dismissed due to the circumstances of your arrival. I suggest you come with me. I will arrange for accommodations as you come to terms with what has happened." Headmaster Ozpin stood, collecting his scroll and cane before walking over to the door. He pulled the grey portal open, turning back to me. "You could stay, of course," the Headmaster smiled, knowing that I would do no such thing.

I stood slowly and followed him, trying to avoid putting too much weight on the injured ankle. I entered the viewing room to walk in on an argument.

"Ozpin, I can't just let you wipe the security footage! I'd lose my job if they ever found out, and probably more besides," the weasel faced investigator protested.

"I understand, Jonathan. But there is more going on here that is of greater importance," Ozpin calmly responded, fending off the detective with his cane while the other tapped out commands on a monitor.

"My job feels pretty important to me," grumbled the inspector I now knew as Jonathan. I noticed he did stop fighting to keep the Headmaster from the terminal however.

"That's not what I meant, old friend. I know your job is important to you, and this community. I also appreciate you revealing this to me. However, the security of our kingdoms must be preserved."

"From Grimm?" The inspector puzzled, scratching his head. Ozpin didn't give an answer one way or the other but instead picked up his mug and took another drink. Idly I wondered if he actually still had coffee in there, or if he was just faking it. "The council isn't going to like this Oz," the inspector continued, arms crossed.

"Ozpin, please. And no they will not. But this is something they will simply have to deal with."

"I'm serious, Professor. They have a lot more power now, and they don't take kindly to being overruled especially on things like this. They're just gunning for an excuse to cut you down to size and I don't want this to be it."

"Your concern is duly noted," Ozpin intoned to the sighs of the inspector. "Come with me now, Glen." I followed the well dressed teacher out into the hall beyond the observing room.

"That's it?" I asked, still confused. "You're just going to ask me a few questions and I'm a free man? Even though we don't agree on what happened?"

"Mister Foray, when you have as much experience as I do, it doesn't take very long to determine the truth in people's words. Understandably you are still in shock and unconvinced. However, as much I could show you in that room back there I doubt it would have been completely sufficient to change your mind. As such, I believe the best course of action will be to bring you into the rest of the world and allow you to come to the conclusion that this is real, though no longer your planet." A security checkpoint was passed easily with Ozpin's authority, one of the guards going and collecting my bag. It was interesting; for just a school head, when Ozpin said, 'Jump', people asked 'How high?' I hefted the familiar hiking pack still stiff from seawater and our walk continued. "You have a family?"

"Of course," I frowned at this sudden line of questioning. "My mom, my dad, and my little brother and sister." Ozpin nodded, as if what I had said confirmed something important.

"You care for them deeply, do you not?"

"Yeah, yeah I do. They're the best family I could hope for, and I love them to death."

Finally we hit the lobby and I walked out into the crisp night air.

"It is only a short walk to the apartment block. You'll be happy to hear that Beacon will support you indefinitely until you get your feet back under you," Ozpin tapped along beside me.

"Beacon?" I asked, not having heard that name before.

"My apologies, I forget that you haven't acquired much knowledge about our world yet. Beacon is the school that I am headmaster of."

"Oh. Well, thank you. I appreciate it." I hesitated on the words, not sure if I really meant it. Of course someone bailing me out of the police station and setting me up in an apartment out of their own pocket was significant. I was grateful for that, to be sure. But, given the circumstances, I was inclined to be less trustful of those I didn't know. So everyone.

We crossed at an intersection, the lights operating the same way that they did back home. Red, yellow, green, walk and stop - it was all so familiar. These similarities sparked a thought that had been gnawing on my mind for a while, and I turned to the silver haired professor beside me.

"Headmaster Ozpin? If this is a totally different world, how come we do things so similarly?" An eyebrow raised at me once more, and I hurried to explain myself. "I mean, for a different world, there is so much that is exactly the same. We both speak english. We use the same systems of measurement, we have the same basic biology that requires a specific environment as far as I can tell, but this is a different world. I mean - how? Someone created the systems of measurement here, but that wasn't the same person as on Earth. Somehow the languages line up exactly so we can understand each other, but… once again, how?"

Ozpin sighed heavily and looked at the stars, hand clasped tightly around his cane.

"Mister Foray, I do not believe that you are the first person from your world to enter ours. Throughout our history there are scattered incidents that one can overlook as legend or myth, if it weren't for a recurring theme. There are enough references to figures who were 'as a child in their knowledge, yet as an adult in reasoning.' Others were referred to as 'Those that longed for another world 'till it drove them to madness.' The most popularized versions of these historical facts usually falls along the lines of aliens from space." Ozpin chuckled. "In fact, these stories were part of the reason I came down to the station tonight."

"So you base your decisions on alien conspiracy theory nuts?" I yawned, feeling energy sapping from me.

"Hardly, Mister Foray. But you must realize that most stories have a basis in truth somewhere."

I supposed that was true enough. _After all, people thought that the US had alien aircraft at Area 51 but in reality they were just high tech prototypes being flown in secret._

"But you asked me why such things are similar. The truth of the matter is… I am unsure. I do not think that anyone would know. Perhaps in the same way that people can drop through from one world into the other, ideas and language can diffuse. Perhaps if you searched on Earth you would find things that could only come from our world though you don't realize it," Ozpin concluded.

As our conversation carried on, the scenery had slowly changed and my steps had become heavier. The streets no longer looked similar to what I had seen from the back of a police cruiser; the double wide roads with strip malls and stores on either side were no more. Instead a modernized version of the streets of Paris seemed to appear. Large walkways hemmed in a road only wide enough for a single vehicle, lit brightly by streetlamps. Ropes and wires crossed overhead, some carrying electricity and others holding clothes.

Finally, Ozpin guided me into a four story building sandwiched between a cafe and a restaurant. I stumbled into the very small lobby and took a seat in an old chair. It was so old that I could practically see dust flying out in a cloud as it groaned underneath my weight. To say that I was weary was an understatement; I was bone tired. My eyelids fluttered as Ozpin conversed with the lady behind the desk.

 _C'mon, Glen. Just stay awa…_ My mouth stretched cavernously as I yawned. _Nearly… there._

Something was prodding me in the side. Something blunt that was disrupting the beautiful nap I was having. The poking withdrew, then returned along with some words.

"Glen. Mister Foray. Remnant to Mister Foray."

"I'm awake, dad," I called out with a practiced ease, barely disrupting my sleep. It was an art form to convince your parent you were functioning and getting ready for school while in reality you tried for a few more moments of rest. Or while you struggled for the motivation to get out of bed.

 _My bed's a whole lot less comfy than I remember it being,_ I thought drowsily. _And I'm sitting up. Huh?_

Cracking my eyes open, I saw Ozpin standing over me, cane welded to my ribs. I jumped up suddenly, fighting the onset of dizziness.

"Awake, I'm awake. I'm up sir." I murmured unconvincingly.

"Indeed," came Ozpin's slightly amused tones. "Follow me, Mister Foray. You have to make it to the fourth floor yet." The winding staircase was absolute murder to worn out me. Really, it was like the day after leg day without all the soreness. "Here we are. Flat 4-B."

Ozpin dangled a set of keys before me. I grabbed onto them, but Ozpin did not let go. Instead he forced me to look up and meet his eyes.

"Mister Foray. Please pay attention to what I have to say now." I did so, trying to keep myself mentally active by repeating the Headmaster's words to myself.

"I want you to think on this question. When I first appeared, you were on the verge of a mental breakdown. You were emotionally, mentally, and physically taxed, desperate for someone to understand and believe you. You did indeed perk up significantly once I put my faith in your honesty and sound mind. However, when we discussed how this could happen, you refused that you could be on a different planet despite very few options. Do you follow?" I nodded, willing to let him say his piece so I could get to sleep quicker. "You yourself admitted that the other three options are nigh impossible. So why is it that you would rather accept the insanity that was so close to breaking you down than entertain the idea you are existing on another planet?"

"I'm not sure I follow," I muttered confusedly. Ozpin simply relinquished the keys and clapped me on the shoulder.

"I'm sure you will understand eventually. Just keep it in mind as you become acquainted with Remnant. Goodnight, Mister Foray. I shall see you in a week's time." The headmaster began to walk back towards the stairs. My injured hands fiddled with the keys and the lock, having a difficult time unlocking the portal to my oblivion.

Just as the battered wood door swung open, I heard Ozpin call once more from the stairwell.

"And Glen?" The headmaster's face was soft, and he spoke in a gentle tone. "I'm sorry for your loss." With that the professor dipped into the darkened alcove and disappeared from sight. Finally I opened the flat and closed the door behind me, sinking down into a couch. Even with the cold leather pressed on my face sleep was not long in claiming me. I drifted into dreams of home where red eyed beasts stalked in the shadows.

 **A/N: So, another chapter done, and another chapter to remind me of my grammatical failings. Comma splices - comma splices everywhere. Still, I like the way that this one turned out. In keeping with my attempt at realism, I hope to have cast more light on the mental state of Glen and how he is still stuck in denial - trying to come to terms with what has happened. It's a fair bit of build up to be sure, and I hope you stick with me as we flush out Glen's position in Vale and catapult him towards the beginning arcs of the show. Anyway, finals week is coming up, so the next chapter could be a little longer in coming. I appreciate all of you who read this far. As always, constructive criticism welcome! See you on the flip side.**


	3. Chapter 3

Ozpin swiftly made his way back down the stairs from where he had left Glen. The young man was … an interesting case, to say the least. The boy was certainly cerebral and intelligent, considering all of his options and trying to make logical sense of what was happening.

 _Unfortunately for him, I do not believe there is a simple and logical conclusion to be had._

Equally unfortunate was the pattern Ozpin had noted in the similar cases from the past. From what the headmaster had gathered over half of the similar cases had been driven to madness or committed suicide - often a combination of both. Glen had a strong mind and a strong soul, which Ozpin believed would leave him in a good place to be able to deal with this incredible situation.

 _Then again, one never truly knows how an individual will react. The love and attention he received to leave him in such a psychologically stable position may be what saves Glen, or it may be what destroys him when he realizes that he is separated from the source of it._

Ozpin was rarely wrong in his judgments of character, but the headmaster did not get to where he was by leaving things to chance. Instead, the wizard rang the bell at the front desk again.

"One moment, please!" came the small voice from the office. Ozpin waited patiently, both hands leaning on his cane.

 _Wait…_ Ozpin thought. _If both hands are on my cane, where is my coffee mug?_

The headmaster felt a brief spike of panic, an unusual emotion for the calm and collected man, before he recalled that it had been left on the counter when he picked up the keys to the room. Barely a second later the mug was back in its rightful place.

"I'm sorry Professor Ozin, I had to finish putting the details of the check in into the system. I didn't mean to keep you waiting," came the gentle tones of the rabbit faunus in front of him.

"It's no problem, Mrs. Scarlatina. I'll let you return to sleep as soon as possible," smiled Ozpin. "I was wondering if I could talk to your daughter for a moment? I promise I won't be too long."

"Of course, Professor. Give me a moment." Mrs. Scarlatina murmured, rubbing at the bags under her eyes as she walked off through a door in the back.

 _Velvet Scarlatina,_ Ozpin mused. The soon-to-be second year student at Beacon was indeed an exceptionally talented young woman in combat, but lacked confidence and assertiveness. It made her extraordinarily polite and gentle, but also timid - susceptible to being pushed around by others, or being crippled by shyness in social situations. _Perhaps this will help to bring her out of her shell slightly. It will be important for her to have that confidence when she graduates as a huntress._

Velvet hurried out, stumbling slightly before pulling up in front of the headmaster.

"I-I didn't expect to see you Professor," the girl said, hands clasped before her.

"Neither did I, Miss Scarlatina. It is only through bizarre series of circumstances that I am here at all." Velvet's eyebrows scrunched together in confusion, but she didn't voice the questions she had. "I have just signed a young man into one of your empty guest rooms upstairs, and I would like you to keep an eye on him for me."

The expression on Velvet's face fell into one of dismay.

"But sir, I-I couldn't possibly-"

"Velvet, please. This is vitally important. I am entrusting you with this task." The headmaster waited for another objection, but when none was forthcoming he continued on. "The young man upstairs is from another world."

"You mean… another kingdom, Professor?" Velvet queried, unable to trust any of her four ears.

"No. I mean another world. He comes from another planet that, while similar to ours in many regards, is not Remnant." Velvet felt her mouth fall open in shock before she tried to pull herself together. Unfortunately she was not altogether successful, and Ozpin took her silence as a means to continue. "You see Miss Scarlatina, I do not know the circumstances or reasons for why or how he appeared, but he did nevertheless. He is going to have a difficult time adjusting to the fact he is no longer on his planet. This is where you-"

"He's an alien?" interrupted Velvet, mouth finally connecting to brain. One of Ozpin's eyebrows raised, and the bunny faunus realized that she had just cut off the headmaster. "Oh! I didn't mean to interrupt you! I'm so sorry!" she cried, face tingeing pink with embarrassment.

"It's perfectly alright, Miss Scarlatina. It is quite a shock I will admit. But no, he is not an alien. He is as human as…" The headmaster paused for only a split second as he reconsidered his choice of words. _After all, the phrase "you or I" is hardly accurate._ "... any one of us."

Velvet simply flushed a deeper shade of red. _Those stupid movies Coco had me watch,_ the faunus groaned internally. _Aliens aren't real. Now I just look even sillier than before._

"Let me provide you with an abbreviated version," Ozpin continued. "He is not the first person to appear from his world into ours. There are many such events throughout history, but unfortunately many were overcome with grief or were unable to cope. I want you to watch over him, and prevent him from doing anything… untowards to himself." Velvet visibly paled at the thought. Ozpin rushed to reassure the girl.

"Don't worry. I highly doubt he would even attempt such a thing. I simply want to make sure that there will be someone watching over him when I cannot." The faunus nodded slowly, still shaken but undeterred.

"Lastly, those that did survive and adapt were often sought out for their knowledge. Man often made great leaps in technology when one of these foreigners appeared in history. It is possible that if word got out of his… situation … groups of ill repute might try and get their hands on him. Because of this I need the fact that he is not from Remnant to remain a secret. Do you understand?" asked Ozpin seriously. "As far as anyone else is concerned, he is a friend from out of town."

"Out of town?"

"Way out of town," smiled Ozpin gently.

"I-I understand Professor," murmured Velvet.

"Miss Scarlatina. I would not have chosen you if I didn't think you were capable of rising to the challenge," Ozpin encouraged, conveniently leaving out how _few_ good options that he really had. "Hunters and huntresses must be ready to face any situation, regardless of how strange or grim."

 _I-I know he has a lot of faith in me, but I don't know if I can really do this,_ panicked Velvet. _I doubt I can talk to him, or really help him, and what do I do if - if - I know! I'll ask Coco. She'll know how to handle this!_

Emboldened by her faith in her team leader, Velvet spoke once more.

"Sir? Can I - can I tell Coco about this?"

"Ahh, Miss Adel," chuckled Ozpin. "I was about to suggest this myself. I realize that this is a heavy burden to drop on a single person. You may certainly have your team aid you, though it must be said that they shall not tell a single soul. Do I make myself clear?"

"Perfectly, sir," said Velvet, smiling in gratitude.

"Very well. Now, Miss Scarlatina, I believe that you should get some rest; tomorrow is a new day." With that, the wizard turned and tapped swiftly away into the night.

Velvet returned to her room, hands twisting together in anxiety.

 _First thing tomorrow, I'm contacting Coco. She'll be able to help me._

Right now though, the Faunus desperately needed some rest- if the knot of anxiety in her gut didn't keep her up.

 _You can do it Velvet._

The bunny slipped off into an uneasy rest, tossing and turning much like the young man upstairs. It was shaping up to be a rough night for the both of them.

* * *

"Coco? Coco are you there?" The accented voice of Coco's teammate filtered through the speakers of her scroll.

"Velvet? It's…" Coco quickly checked her bedside alarm clock. "Seven in the morning? It's way too early to be up on a holiday. The hell is going on?"

"I-I don't really know what to do, and I need your help-"

"Velvet, what on Remnant is going on? Are you okay?" asked the gunner concernedly, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed.

 _If anyone is terrifying my girl, I'm going to kick their ass,_ growled Coco internally as she rushed to get ready.

"No! No, Coco, I'm fine," Velvet hurried to calm her leader. "I'm not in any danger. It's just-" she paused, unsure of how she wanted to explain the situation. "It's just that there's a new guy who's staying in one of our flats, and-"

"A guy, eh?" smirked Coco.

"Wha- No!" sputtered Velvet, but it was too late.

"You need not say any more," purred Coco, grin growing to shit-eating proportions. "I'll be right over Vel."

The leader of team CFVY terminated the scroll call, shutting of the protestations of her faunus friend.

 _This is going to be hilarious,_ thought the gunner.

Far across town Velvet slumped against a wall in her room, head in hands. _What have I gotten myself into?_ she groaned.

Velvet was on Coco as soon as she walked through the front doors of the lobby.

"Coco, Coco it's not like that, not at all! Ozpin brought him in last night and got him a room."

"Ozpin, eh?" teased the gunner. "Didn't peg him as a matchmaker." Coco attempted to walk up the stairs only to have Velvet hang off one arm and attempt to stop her.

"Please, Coco! Hear me out!" begged the faunus. The gunner sighed, feigning reluctance before allowing herself to be dragged back. Velvet looked relieved, launching herself into a winding explanation that eventually covered everything that had transpired the night before. Coco's eyebrows kept rising throughout the story till Velvet was certain that they would simply come off her head. Sadly the limits of basic human biology prevented that from happening, entertaining as it might have been.

"Well that's not nearly as exciting as I hoped," sighed Coco. "He's just an alien that's dropped in from another planet."

"I'm serious!" protested Velvet, simply receiving an eye roll in response. "Ozpin wouldn't lie to me!"

The gunner's first inclination was to simply roll her eyes once more and perhaps throw in an exasperated sigh. There was just so much _attitude_ that could be conveyed in such little movement. Coco hesitated before following through however. Velvet really did appear to be serious, and she'd never done anything like this in the past.

 _And if she's telling the truth, then Ozpin is hardly the type to joke about such matters._

Still, one could never be too sure.

"Alright. Suppose I believed you. What room would he be staying in?" asked Coco, fishing for information.

"Uhh… I think room 4-B."

That was all Coco needed to hear. She had been over to Velvet's often enough that it took little time to find what she was looking for. A minute later the gunner stalked back out of the elder Scarlatina's office, spare keys held high in triumph.

"Well then, why don't we go ask him ourselves?"

"No no no!" Velvet hissed. "We can't just walk in there! It's not … it's not…"

"Not what?"

"Not… right. It's just … really creepy!"

Coco just shrugged. She had stopped caring what people said or thought about her long ago. Unless they were complimenting her good looks or superb fashion sense of course; but then, people can hardly be blamed for telling the truth.

"Give - give it back," cried Velvet, hopping around and trying to grab the keys.

"Nope," grinned the gunner, popping the 'P'. Then, with hardly a second of hesitation, Coco took off up the stairs trailed by a frantic faunus. Coco used her position in the lead effectively, boxing Velvet out and preventing her from taking the lead. As such, the gunner was able to get to the door relatively uncontested while Velvet simply had to accept that her teammate would be entering the flat.

 _Please don't work, please don't... dang it,_ thought the bunny as she heard the lock click.

Velvet bounced from one foot to another in anxiety as Coco unlocked the door and twisted the knob. Never had she dreamed of intruding on someone else's property, least of all while they were _inside._ What if they were awake? Just the thought of such an uncomfortable interaction was enough for Velvet to want to back out, even if Coco was there to help her.

"Aaand we're in," smirked Coco as the door creaked open. The bunny stayed out in the hallway, tensing as she waited for an argument or something else to arise. In fact Velvet was so wound up that when the gunner popped her head back through the door, it was all the bunny could do to keep from letting out a startled squeal. "Oh, stop sitting on the fence and get in here. He's still asleep."

The faunus reluctantly entered the apartment, easily finding the figure sprawled on a couch.

"Soooo… should I wake him up?" Coco asked quietly.

"No!" Velvet whispered back. "Let him sleep. Maybe we could just go back downstairs and wait for him to wake up?" The gunner seemed to consider this briefly.

"Nope. I'll be perfectly-" _Ping._ "-fine here." Coco pulled her scroll out of her back pocket, checking messages. "Huh. I got one message from Oz. Seems like all the information we have on … Glen Foray? What a weird name." Velvet peeked over Coco's shoulder as her leader continued to scroll.

"Hell," murmured the gunner. "The last thing he supposedly remembers from his world is falling out of an aircraft at thirty plus thousand feet? I'd be worrying about making sure my landing was perfect, and I have aura and training. Seems like … seems like he also doesn't believe jack. Doesn't know he's in Remnant." Coco read something that caused her to chuckle. "The Oz trying to induct him into a cult; well, I wouldn't put it past him."

The two girls piled through most of the information, gathering what they could before the scroll was tucked away once more. Silence reigned as the two simply sat in the kitchen, every so often glancing at the still slumbering figure.

"I'm going to wake him up," Coco muttered. "This is so dull for something that could potentially be so exciting."

Velvet felt a pang of sympathy for the young man, and tried to forestall his rude awakening.

"Tell me about him, Coco."

"I just did, Vel. We both read through a heck of a lot of transcripts and reports. What more do you want?" the gunner asked quizzically.

"Tell me about the clothing," Velvet pleaded. The gunner sighed, eyeing her teammate with a critical glance.

"You're trying to get me to let him sleep longer. Well, it won't work." Velvet folded her ears down and widened her eyes, sending an unspoken plea. "Fine. But right after, he's getting dumped off that fake-leather couch. Let's see here…" Coco looked the boy up and down before beginning her observations.

"Well, he hasn't spent much money on what he's wearing there, I can tell you that much. They're mass produced and don't fit to his figure at all. However, you notice how the sweatpants look to be made of a somewhat water-resistant fabric? That, along with the tennis shoes, t-shirt, and hoodie tell me he probably prefers function and comfort over fashion. They won't restrict his freedom of movement at all so he's probably decently active on a regular basis. I will say though, that maroon is too dark to be paired with those black pants. Doesn't look bad over the white undershirt though..." Coco traied off, seeing if there was anything more to be added. Deciding that there wasn't, the gunner stepped forwards to follow through with waking up the young man.

 _Time to see what the aliens are really like,_ Coco joked.

* * *

Hitting the floor is not a nice way to wake up. It's a long way from being the worst though, I can tell you that. Somewhere up on that list I would put ice water, a house fire, or having your plane disintegrate in mid air throwing you into the Gulf of Mexico.

Huh. That last one was oddly specific.

Regardless, the two foot drop onto hardwood was not pleasant. I delicately propped myself up on hands and knees, trying to avoid putting too much weight on my tender palms as I crawled back onto the couch. Sleep was a tempting misstress, and between my aching body and freakish dreams I hadn't become well enough acquainted with her.

"Oh no you don't," came a voice from behind, strong hands spilling me off the leather surface once more. An adrenalin spike shot through my body and I scrambled to my feet, spinning to face the unknown intruder. All semblance of tiredness fell from me in an instant as I surveyed my situation.

The young woman before me stood nearly as tall as I did, with a slim yet athletic figure. She had brown hair that hung down in curls on one side, dyed a sort of caramel orange with a dark brown beret to cap it off. Serious brown eyes stared at me over dark aviator glasses. She wore a cocoa colored long sleeve shirt and black pants, with some kind of drape or half-skirt hanging off the side. A brown belt with a large golden buckle capped off the stylish look along with a few other accessories.

In some ways she reminded me of the interrogation room, but replace grey with brown and black. Seriously; it was like everyone had their own color theme.

 _Yes,_ some part of my mind supplied. _But the interrogation room was not nearly as easy on the eyes._

 _Shut up, me. That's no way to think._

"Uhh …" I stammered, unsure of what to make of this latest development. At least I had fallen asleep fully clothed, thank goodness. "What on Earth is going on?"

"What on Remnant, you mean," the girl corrected me

"I- I suppose so. Remnant."

 _Right. I'm on a new planet now; according to the headmaster anyway. It makes sense they'd have modified expressions._

There was another pause as I tried to figure out what was going on. "Am I in the right room?" I said hesitantly, praying that I was wrong. "Because if not, I am so sorry. I was led to this room by Headmaster Ozpin and the keys worked in the lock and, uhh, I didn't really know any better. I'm… really new. Maybe the front desk mixed something up?" I stopped my mini-monologue as the girl in front of me crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow.

"Uhh… I guess I'll leave. I'm really, really sorry about this. I'll see if I can get it sorted with the manager and-"

"Stop messing with him," came a soft voice from behind in a distinct Australian accent. "He's clearly confused." My attention had been focused so much on the woman who had flipped me off the couch I had failed to notice the girl standing immediately behind her.

The girl behind wore a red turtleneck sweater and black leggings, leading down to a pair of sneakers. She had long straight brown hair and kind brown eyes. The Australian sounding girl was a little shorter than me or the fashionista, peeking over the latter's shoulder.

 _Seriously. All three of us have brown hair, pale skin, and brown eyes. I'm feeling a bit white noise right now… no pun intended._

We did have our differences enough that I couldn't really complain. The first girl had much darker hair with the distinctive caramel tips. The second had a lighter shade of hair similar to mine, though lacking the auburn highlights I had that peeked through in the sunlight.

 _And the rabbit ears for her. Those are certainly distinctive enough._

Something about what I had just thought wasn't quite right. Oh… it probably had to do with the bunny ears coming from the top of her head.

 _What?_

"Yeah," I choked out. "Let's go with confused."

"You ruin all my fun, Vel," sighed the first girl, flopping back onto the recently vacated couch. "But I suppose introductions are in order. You can go first." The voice of the seated girl was a far cry from the timid suggestions of her partner. Hers was the voice of someone who was used to being in command.

"You're too kind," I muttered sarcastically, slightly put off by her tone. Nevertheless, I forged onwards trying to make sense of the mess my life had descended into. Hopefully I would receive an answer to the age old question _have you inadvertently slept in someone else's flat or are you facing two criminals (one who is exceptionally well dressed and the other who has an Australian accent and rabbit ears, of all things) who have found their way into your new apartment after just the night before having been told while in an interrogation room contemplating your possible insanity you're not actually on your planet anymore by an eccentric old man who is neither bald nor in a wheelchair yet is teaching exceptional young men and women to be defenders of this world - not Earth, mind you - mere hours after being rescued from the ocean you found yourself in because you fell from the stratosphere when your plane exploded - on Earth, mind you- while you went to go scuba diving with friends._

Confused yet? Because I sure as hell was. And while that was a horrible run-on sentence that didn't actually end up asking a question, I was ready for some answers.

"My name is Glen Foray."

"Well Foray, I'm Coco Adel-"

 _Coco, huh? I suppose that explains the color coordination._

"-and the shy gal who saved you from embarrassment is Velvet Scarlatina."

"So what I'm extrapolating here is I am in the right place."

"Yep," confirmed Coco, popping the 'P' at the end of 'yep'. "This is your home now. Bless Vel and her little bleeding bunny heart, she couldn't just sit by and let me mess with you."

"Ohhhkaaayyy," I said. "That's another thing. She has bunny ears."

I know that Ozpin had shown me pictures of faunus the night before, but seeing the real deal twitching in front of me was an entirely different… animal. Man, my word choice was going to have to be a lot more specific from here on out.

"Yep," Coco agreed as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Velvet nudged the fashion chick.

"Tell him we're not creepers," whispered the Australian bunny. Coco just rolled her eyes as if she wanted to make a snarky comment, but instead acceded to the request.

"In case you didn't catch that, Velvet wants me to inform you that we're not all about watching you sleep. That was kind of dull, so I woke you up."

"How generous of you."

"I know," Coco responded easily, deliberately taking my facetious remark seriously. "I am exceptionally charitable."

"Really now? Forgive me, but what part of dropping an injured man on the floor twice is generous?" I snarked.

"You weren't dropped, you were pushed."

"Semantics. My point still stands."

"It was _generous,_ " stressed Coco, "because I could have made it the most miserable awakening you have ever experienced. Trust me, having spent some time with upperclassmen, I know what I'm talking about."

 _Debatable. That airplane moment was still pretty bad,_ I thought.

"Coco!" Velvet whined.

"Fiiinne. I was getting there. Velvet's parents own this building, and I happen to know where the spare set of keys are. We're not breaking and entering," the fashion conscious brunette sighed heavily.

"That's… good to know. But it still begs the question as to why you are in my living room."

"Oh that?" Coco said, dismissing the question with a wave of her hand. "That's because the Oz apparently asked us to watch over you."

"He did!" Velvet called from where she had taken a seat behind Coco. "Professor Ozpin did ask me to last night after he dropped you off!"

"He asked you to watch over me while I sleep?"

"N-no!" flushed the rabbit faunus. "No, that was Coco's idea!"

"Way to throw me under the bus there Vel," the fashionista sighed. "But yes. The short of it is that we're here to help you adjust to being on Remnant. This is just the introductions."

"You have a very interesting way of making yourself known." Coco just shrugged unapologetically. "So, uhhh, the bunny ears. They're… real, right?"

"Yes. Of course they are," said Coco.

"Can I touch them?" I asked, intending to test my senses and confirm that they weren't deceiving me. A stunned silence fell over the room, Coco's jaw dropping ever so slightly. Velvet's face simply flushed a deep scarlet and she reached up to instinctively cover her ears. Coco was, unsurprisingly, the first to recover of the two.

"Wow, you really don't know jack, do you?"

"No, not really," I muttered. I sensed I had made an unintentional gaffe, even if I had no clue what that could be at the moment. I felt the heat of embarrassment rising within me.

"Well Glen, let me fill you in a little. Faunus are generally fairly protective of their animalistic features, whether they be tail, ears, horns, whatever. Letting someone touch them is an act of trust." I scrunched my eyebrows together, not understanding. "One might say, _intimate_ trust."

"Oh," I muttered, as my face began to burn. " _Oh._ I really - I wasn't making a move there, I swear. Chalk this up to ignorance, please. Jeez…" Coco just laughed at my embarrassment.

"Don't worry. I understand you're new here. That's one of the few reasons I didn't haul off and lay you out cold."

"Thanks," I squeaked.

"Don't mention it," grinned Adel, her smile becoming almost predatory. "After all, I am exceptionally charitable."

This time it was my turn to roll my eyes and groan, and Velvet even let out a little giggle as some of the awkwardness in the room was dispelled. Still, this latest incident got me thinking.

 _I really know nothing about this world. I need to know more. The history, the ins and outs, so on and so forth._

"So, speaking of my lack of knowledge, would there be a… I don't know… library or something around here that I could visit?"

"No problem, Foray. We'll hook you up." Coco climbed to her feet, and I took the initiative to go to the door. "Woah, hold on there champ," came Coco's voice from behind me. I turned, unsure as to what to expect. "You're not going out in public like that, are you? Your hair's all messed up and those clothes aren't really your best look."

"Give me a second," I sighed, making my way over to the small bathroom. My tired eyes stared back at me from the mirror, critically looking over my appearance. My clothes were a little rumpled sure, but I had slept in them. There wasn't anything to be done about that; the rest of my clothing along with my suitcase was probably sitting in Davey Jones' locker. What I had on was what I was stuck with. Admittedly, it didn't smell too great. After being on my person for the better part of two days and having been dunked in the water, I smelled a bit l'eau de BO and Ocean Gone Bad.

It's the only cologne I use, thank you.

The rest wasn't too awful. There was some light stubble that was beginning to show on my face because I hadn't shaved in the last day or two. I kind of enjoyed that though. I liked to think that it gave me a roguish look. My mother and my sister would have surely disagreed, but I had formed my own opinion on the matter. I looked good with facial hair regardless of how much they protested that it didn't.

The real issue was my hair - that on top of my head, I mean.

Even with lax standards like mine the brown strands were all over the place and needed to be dealt with. I stretched out a hand to run some water on, only to catch sight of the bandages wound around them.

 _Well, crap. I'm not supposed to get these wet, am I?_

I simply resorted to running my fingers through my hair to put it in a semi-manageable state before returning to the living room. Coco opened her mouth, probably to comment on how it hadn't changed at all, but I held up a hand to forestall her.

"Yes, I know; it's still pretty poor. But it's the best I can do with what I've got, okay?"

"I can't believe I'm letting myself be seen with you. A girl has an image to uphold."

I just shook my head at the fashion conscious girl. Then, I went and got the door - because my mother taught me how to be a gentleman.

"After you, your majesties," I joked, bowing low as Coco followed Velvet out. The girl in question just shook her head.

"You're not funny."

"Well, I enjoyed it," I chuckled, letting the door slam behind me. The fashionista just rolled her eyes so hard I thought her retinas might detach before taking the lead down the stairwell.

The day outside was bright and sunny out, with people hustling around on the sidewalks. I set off after Coco who forged a path through the pedestrians. Most of the people I saw were human, though a few faunus did appear. Aside from that though there was almost nothing to tell me that I wasn't in some small city back in the states. The same kinds of shops appeared, green spaces popped up sporadically where kids played, and cars hummed quietly by on the road.

"Glen? If - if you don't mind me asking, why don't you think that this world is real? You don't have to tell me, of course," Velvet softly asked.

"How do you know I don't think it's real?" I responded, curious.

"Ozpin said as much last night, plus he sent us information on what had transpired."

"Of course he did," I said, stopping as we waited for the light to change before crossing. "Well, it just can't be real. No one ever teleports anywhere, much less from world to world. It's a literal impossibility. Besides, if you know so much, you know what happened before I got here. There's no way I could have survived a fall like that."

"So what do you think this is?"

"I… I'm not sure. But I'm not convinced that this is actually happening yet."

We walked on in silence after that. Eventually I pulled the hoodie off and tied the arms around my waist, as the sun beating down on me was becoming slightly uncomfortable. I was still dressed for the inside of a cold jet, not walking out in the heat.

Doubt began to beat down on me just like the shining orb above.

 _I can't really say it couldn't happen, can I? As impossible as it is, I don't know enough to prove or disprove the movement between worlds idea. Especially when everything is so real and true to life, but just different enough to be out of the realm of my wildest fantasies._

But it was impossible, wasn't it? It had to be. As my questions began to assail me, I was thankfully spared any more thought on the subject when our leader pulled up short.

"Here we are," Coco proudly announced.

The store was a fairly nice little place, located on the corner of an intersection. A larger park than some of the green patches I had seen sat in the middle of a ring of businesses, with deciduous trees and fountain in the middle. The building Coco had gestured to had a very clean look, with plenty of large windows and a steel-and-wood motif going on. There was only one slight issue.

"Coco, that says Connection Cafe. Not library."

"Of course it does. It's a RemNet Cafe. You can surf the net for information, and I can have a cup of coffee. Much better than the library," Coco explained simply, pulling open the door for me and Velvet to file in.

"Are you sure it's not just because you don't want to be seen with me at a place you frequent?" I joked. No response was forthcoming, and I turned to see Coco looking only slightly guilty. "Feel free to deny that anytime…"

"I was trying to be diplomatic. You know, because I'm so generous." The fashionista grinned as all I could do was snort in response.

"How may I help you?" Thankfully a staff member interrupted us before Coco could pull off any more verbal one upmanship. I quickly was seated and logged on to the "RemNet" - seriously, what a way to make the entire internet a pun- and left to my own devices as the girls went to get drinks. I sat there much longer than I would like to admit trying to think of what to search.

 _Idiot. Just start at the beginning. Learn some basics first._

The keyboard clacked as I began my steep learning curve.

 **SEARCH: remnant history for kids**

I clicked on the first video link that appeared, and settled back as a subtitled feed began to play, a smooth female narrator guiding my journey through the past.

 **In the beginning, Man was born from dust into the world of Remnant. These early inhabitants of the planet were strong and resourceful, thought soon they were challenged. Creatures of darkness, Grimm, came from the shadows to kill Man and destroy all his creations. Thankfully, Man discovered a weapon that could be used to fight back the growing menace: this power was appropriately named Dust.**

It took an hour and a half to get through the entire video series for just the broad strokes of history - and that was before I began researching on my own. I looked up information on dust, hunters, grimm, airships, the kingdoms, and much more. At some point Velvet came over and gave me a sandwich and an iced drink that I thanked her for, before scarfing them down hungrily. I had so much to learn about.

Then, over three hours into my study session, something inside me broke. I was watching a video on Grimm and the survivor of an attack was being interviewed.

" **... and on that day, I lost both my daughters and my husband. For the longest time I just simply couldn't accept that they were gone."**

" **Grimm attacks are a tragedy that unfortunately many must live with outside the walls…"**

As the newscasters rattled on, the survivor's words rang in my head. Over. And over. And over again, until they sounded no more like a grief stricken woman and more like an old headmaster.

" _You have a family?"_

" _So why is it that you would rather accept the insanity that was so close to breaking you down than entertain the idea you are existing on another planet?"_

 _He knew,_ I thought. _That bastard knew._

You would think that maybe me figuring out I was in a different world would have come much earlier, or maybe I never would have believed it at all. You'd think that my little 'aha!' moment would have come off the back of something more scientifically sound considering how I'd been thinking through this before.

" _I'm sorry for your loss."_

No, it wasn't science. It was this that put me over the edge. Because to me, there was nothing more important in the world than family.

 _Was being the operative world._

The weight of my discovery hit me like a living monster had been implanted in my abdominal cavity, shredding all within its reach. My brain tried to internalize this new reality that it had finally come to accept, but some part still fought and cried out at the impossibility of it all. My mind was torn, my emotions were shredded, and my body began to pay the price physically.

"Glen? What's going on?" came Velvet's concerned voice as I rushed past their table.

I didn't respond. I couldn't, because as soon as I reached a trash can I emptied the contents of my stomach.

"Glen!" Velvet's surprised cry was followed by a clatter as chairs were shoved back and the two rushed over to my side.

"You don't look good, champ," Coco said gently as she gingerly helped me back to my feet.

"It's real," I whispered. "It's real, it's real…"

"You finally figured that out, huh?" Coco quipped dryly. Velvet swatted her on the shoulder, a slight frown on her face.

"They're gone…" I felt close, for the first time in my life, to having an anxiety attack. My chest was being crushed by an insurmountable weight. My insides were still upside down and I felt a coldness radiating out from the center of my chest, as if someone had put an IV drip directly in my heart.

"Glen? Glen?"

"Is your friend okay?" came the concerned voice of the cafe worker.

"He'll be okay," I heard Coco respond. "Vel, you get him back to the flat. I'll pick up the tab on this one. Catch up with you soon, okay?"

I walked out back into the sunshine with Velvet at my side, casting worried glances at me every few seconds.

My head was throbbing with my elevated heart rate, and I kept breathing deeply through my nose to prevent from throwing up once more. The rhythmic beat of counting _in-two-three out-two-three_ helped to take my mind away from the problem at hand. Well, that only lasted as far as halfway up the stairs to my room. There, somewhere just past the second floor, tears began to leak from my eyes.

 _They're gone. Totally removed from my life. Gone. They're gone._ _I have no one. No one no one no one-_

My breath came in quick, ragged gasps.

"Coco, what do we do?" came the timid and panicked voice of the faunus.

"Glen? Glen! Just calm down. Breath deep, okay? Follow me; in-two-three-four and out-two-three-four." Coco was there with Velvet, trying to help me settle down.

"Sorry I- never- had to - deal with - this - before," I hyperventilated. "Know - I should - breathe - slower - can't. I can - I can't." I fought internally to slow my breathing, doing everything to fight the muscle spasms that forced air out of me. Eventually, with sheer dogged focus, I won the small battle.

"C'mon, champ. Let's get you up the stairs. Okay?" Coco hoisted me on one side, Velvet on the other. They deposited me in my room, back on the couch from where the day had begun. "You going to be okay Glen?"

 _No. No I'm not. How could I possibly be okay?_ I wanted to scream. _I'm having to deal with the reality that I've been ripped away from everything I ever knew._

"I'll be fine," I managed in a shaky voice. "Just a shock to the system. I think - I just think I'd like some time. To absorb this, you know?" I smiled a watery smile that threatened to fall off my face at any moment.

"Are you sure?" Velvet softly asked, concern written all over her face.

"Yeah," I said, voice breaking. "Please." Neither of them looked happy with leaving me as I was. Coco almost started to argue, but Velvet pulled her back and out the door.

"We'll check back in tomorrow. Okay?" Coco received no response and finally closed the wooden portal, leaving me alone.

Alone. I was really and truly alone, wasn't I? I had nobody that loved me or cared about me. There was no one that I could call a friend or family. They were all gone.

My whole body shook as I began to sob, great heaving gasps as the pain of the separation began to fully weigh down on me. Hours later I finally fell asleep, emotionally drained and with tears still sitting in my eyes.

 **A/N: Well, I said it might take me longer ... by that what I really meant was I was going to download the Google Docs app on my phone and just hammer stuff out in my free time. Really, I did not expect to have this done by now. I hope that my writing doesn't suffer because my brain was still on finals stuff while I was trying to type. I also found out that I can post reviews of my own story, which I found a lot funnier than it probably should have been.**

 **Anyway, yeah. Glen finally accepts it for what it is. I'm doing my best to not rush because I want to write a fight scene so badly - but I can't very well put the carriage before the horse. We're still world building and getting a feel for how Glen is going to work before we get to that point. Still, I foresee a combat situation coming up in the future ... the somewhat near future. I hope. I'm going to do my best once again not to force or rush anything.**

 **I also like to take characters and other things that we don't know much about and expound upon them. I'm going to do my best to stick to canon (I.E. me pulling up the RWBY wikia as I write about Velvet and Coco). I really want to do the show and characters justice. No OOC stuff (I hope). But still, having all that blank space to work with team CFVY? Heck yeah I'm going to use my imagination and take a little liberty. So much fun :P**

 **As always, reviews are appreciated! Thank you guys so much for reading and I'll see you on the flip side.**

 **EDIT: Autocorrect bit me in the butt here and there - and even though I wrote "distinctive" I was unable to pick out that Velvet had an Australian accent, not a British one. I looked up the voice actress to confirm, and she is indeed from down under. Welcome to my ignorance XD.**


	4. Chapter 4

I was glad to be left alone. Normally I loved being around people; I was highly sociable and good at getting them to laugh. I did appreciate Velvet and Coco checking in on me daily, I really did deep down. Unfortunately for them, being transported to another planet presents its own host of dilemmas to deal with.

In a way, I imagined it'd have been easier if I did die outright. Because it hurt to know that I was separated from them; it hurt in a way that dug a hole through my chest and left me hollow. An ache was ever present, waking or sleeping.

 _At least if I had died I wouldn't know. I would be in a better place instead of fully aware that I'm completely separated from them._

My anguish went beyond the separation though. Had my family all died or been killed I would have grieved, but at least there would have been closure. Instead I knew that they would probably believe that I was dead and they would be grieving themselves.

 _I doubt they'll find a body either considering I'm here. They'll never have closure, but unlike me they won't know for certain._

Having my family grieve over me was the last thing I wanted. I hurt to know they were hurting.

So, as I tried to come to terms with all this mess the last thing I wanted was people asking me "Are you okay?" It was all I could do not to tell Velvet and Coco to screw off in the nicest possible terms. But they were just trying to care for me as best they knew how, so instead I just sat there numbly.

A knocking at my door disrupted my train of thought.

 _Speak of the devil and he will appear,_ I sighed internally as Velvet came in with a bowl of soup.

"Hey Glen. I brought some vegetable soup." The bunny nervously fidgeted as I just nodded wordlessly from my slumped position. Slowly I grabbed the bowl and raised the spoon to my lips, taking a small bite and giving the faunus a small smile that was immediately returned.

"Do- do you want to talk about anything?" Velvet asked hesitantly. I simply shook my head, ignoring the relief that flitted across the girl's face. In the short time that I'd known her, I recognized that Velvet was just nervous about social interaction; it wasn't that she didn't want to help. She just wasn't confident that she could do it.

"Well, if you need anything, I'll be downstairs." When she received no response, Velvet backed out and closed me into my solitude once more. I was glad it was just the faunus this time; Coco had a habit of asking questions and trying to be "helpful" until I was just about ready to burst.

 _At least Velvet's lack of confidence has her back out the door quickly._

A bite or two more of soup was all I managed before setting the bowl back on the little coffee table by the couch. It's not that the soup wasn't very good; far from it in fact. I simply couldn't bring myself to care enough about the meals to eat more than the minimum.

Maybe music would help me a little? I'd always felt better in the past when I listened to or sang songs. Something kind of sad, but maybe a little hopeful too.

"He said I want to see you again … But I'm stuck-" my voice died out, and a shadow eclipsed my soul. "I'm stuck in colder weather… Maybe tomorrow will be better…" I trailed off once more, emotion cutting into my song.

I used to sing with my sister. We were in choir together. She was so happy that she would get to sing with her brother for a year in high school; her being a freshman and I being a senior. Now she'd never get the chance.

 _How do I deal with this?_ I cried internally. _How do I keep moving forwards?_

The voice of my mother seemed to rise unbidden to the back of my mind, the vast amount of wisdom she had tried to impart on me floating to the surface.

"If I die, remember to love others. It's not a complicated formula. Love your family, love your friends, love everyone you come in contact with," I whispered, thinking of my mom's words I'd often heard when she thought we were in a dangerous situation. Considering how worried my mom would get, it had been a frequent occurrence. "I wish it were that easy. It may be a simple formula, but it's not that easy when I still miss you guys so much."

 _But I am trying, aren't I? I try not to let Velvet or Coco see how much I'm hurting though I'm sure they can sense it. I don't want them to worry more than they do._

Absentmindedly I began to unwind the dirty bandages around my hands. The skin underneath still had scabs running across in jagged lines, but it was certainly healing. My left hand was a little stiff though, a testament to its lack of motion in the previous days. Ever since I broke the third metacarpal and had surgery to correct it the hand tended to get stiff with disuse. After spending a month in a cast it was weaker than my right hand too; the disparity had lessened significantly, but I was still working on it.

I shifted over to the other end of the couch and opened my backpack for the first time since I had gotten on the plane. I hesitated for a moment, hand over the opening before plunging in and fishing out the small container of grip putty. I pulled the turquoise blob out and began kneading it in my left hand as I tried to think my way through this.

 _They'll be sad, yes. But I know they'll recover. I don't have any real regrets - sure I could have spent more time with them instead of screwing around on the Internet, but I didn't leave anything unsaid. They know how I felt._

This at least brought me a little peace at this recognition. I tried to hold onto that feeling, closing my eyes and basking in the feeling.

The glow faded quickly. Instead I was left with a restless unease. The longer I sat there, the more frustrated and agitated I got. I wanted to _do_ something, do anything, to try and alleviate the agony. Standing suddenly, I paced back and forth resisting the urge to scream or punch a hole in the wall. All I wanted was to go home, or at least get as close to home as I possibly could.

 _The docks. I'll head back to the docks._

That was the closest I could get to home, as near as I figured. It was where I had shown up in this world at any rate.

Finally with a little bit of direction I tossed the putty aside, walked over to the door - and paused. I didn't want to have to deal with any questions about where I was going, what I was doing, and when I'd be back. To be fair, I only really had answers to one of those questions and I didn't feel at all like trying to explain myself.

So it was time to explore alternate methods.

I walked back over to the other side of the room and opened a sliding glass door that led out onto a small balcony. The balcony itself wasn't particularly impressive, just a flat surface with a small grill in one corner. What it lacked in any aesthetic appeal, it made up for by exposing the outside of the building.

Of particular interest was a drainpipe that was solidly bolted to the wall, running from the roof all the way down to the street.

My heart was hammering in my chest as I swung my legs over the railing, hands latching on to the drainpipe. My fingers locked in as I swiveled out, planting my feet on the wall so I was leaning back. It was like rappelling down a rock wall - except only your fingers were anchoring you.

Pretty sketchy at four stories up.

I walked my way backwards down the outside of the building, carefully making my way down to the sidewalk. With my feet firmly on solid ground, I took off at a brisk walk back the way Ozpin had brought me the first night. Finally after a little trial and error and a few stops to ask for directions, I ended up at the outer chain link fence that wrapped the outside of the docks.

 _What, you expected it to be easy to get into a private area? Find a solution if you really want to get in there._

I looked around, assessing my options. There were a few faunus standing around with signs that had slogans like " **DOWN WITH THE SDC** " or " **NO SCHNEE FOR ME!** " and things of that nature. I ignored them in favor of trying to find a place to cross over. It only took a little bit of wandering before I found a section of fence where the barbed wire fence topped had worn out and fallen away.

 _I'm grateful to whoever is supposed to replace these,_ I thought.

From that point on it was fairly easy to climb the chain link and make my way into the shipping area.

I'd never really been so close to an industrial dock before, and it was pretty impressive. Shipping containers with a snowflake logo were stacked in huge isles that made me feel like an ant inside a Costco. Thankfully for me, there were hardly any workers about to see me and I made it all the way to the end of a pier. It wasn't the exact one I had arrived at, but it would suffice nonetheless.

I sat on the edge and stared out over the water, legs swinging back and forth lazily.

" _Careful Glen. A freak wave could come up and wash you out to sea."_

I smiled fondly at the memory, regardless of how it hurt to do so. My mom, always so concerned about everything that could possibly go wrong.

The sun beat down on me, gulls squawked overhead, and heavy machinery rumbled in the background. It was hardly the best place to sit and reflect, but it worked for me. I felt closer to my family than I had in the last few days.

Somehow, amidst the noise and emotional reflection, the warm sun lulled me into closing my eyes.

" _Glen!"_

 _I whirled around at the familiarity of the voice, just in time to see my mother run into me, enveloping me in a hug._

" _It's so good to see you! How have you been? Have you been eating enough? You're not forgetting to brush your teeth are you?" My tongue ran guiltily over the plaque that was forming on my teeth. Hey, I hadn't exactly brought my toiletries on the plane with me. My mother just shook her head before continuing on her tirade._

" _You need a shower, young man. Oh, and your hands are all cut up-"_

" _Mom!" I burst in, grinning from ear to ear. "I thought I'd never see you again!"_

" _Glen, you ... won't." I froze at these words, looking around me. I originally thought that we were in my house, but now I instead looked out over an expanse of nothingness._

" _What? But I-"_

" _Glen," my mother said softly, smiling a sad smile at me. "We were devastated that you left. We loved you dearly. I want you to know that, if nothing else. But don't feel sorry for us, or yourself. That's not how I brought you up," she chuckled to herself. "You have hope. You'll see us again someday, I promise."_

 _I felt myself latch onto that hope, clinging to it like it was going to slip away at any moment._

" _Glen, we're all going to grieve. But don't let it cripple you, understand?"_

" _I know mom," I replied. "I know I shouldn't let it crush me.. But… It's so hard. Everything I do just reminds me of you guys and how much I miss you."_

" _Oh Glen," my mom smiled. "Do those things to remember us. We're with you, not holding you back."_

" _Mom?" My parent began to back away into an expanse of nothingness. "No, mom. Wait. Wait!"_

 _My feet churned as I raced to catch up with her, but after only a few steps I felt as if I had hit a wall. I fought as hard as I could but it made no difference._

 _My mother disappeared into a wall of grey mist that enveloped me, cold and clammy. I could sense a malignant presence, and I circled warily. A terrifying roar announced the arrival of a red-eyed beast that swing razor sharp claws into-_

I jolted awake on the end of the pier, and immediately began to bawl. Finally when I was finished with my outpouring of grief, I felt different than the other times I had cried. This time instead of the tears leaving me empty, I felt like something had been released inside of me.

 _I will see them again. I will._

Yes, it was just a dream summoned up by my subconscious, but frankly I couldn't care less. Having hope was something that I could use to banish back the pain and give me the strength I needed to move forwards.

* * *

Velvet hesitated outside the door to the room. She was supposed to gather the plates from the previous day when the current food was delivered, but she had forgotten to grab those when she left. It was just so hard to even find the courage to speak in Glen's presence.

 _He didn't seem so intimidating on the first day,_ Velvet stalled, still standing in the hall. _He seemed easy to talk to and friendly. Now though … now he's different._

The rabbit faunus shook her head, trying to dislodge those thoughts.

 _Glen's grieving. He just lost his whole family. It's not his fault that he is quiet and sullen and sad…_

That was part of the issue too. What did you say to someone that was in emotional turmoil like that? There was no easy fix, but some people just had a way with words that Velvet didn't.

 _Like Coco. She always knows what to ask Glen about or give him suggestions._

The faunus sensed that these were not always appreciated, but it still must be better than what she was able to do. Velvet finally stopped her deflection and summoned up enough courage to open the door.

"Glen?" the bunny asked softly as she held the door just cracked open. "Is it okay if I come in?" Only silence greeted her as she hovered in the entryway. "Glen? I'm - I'm coming in," Velvet announced once more, giving it a few more seconds before she crept into the darkened room.

At least, it would have been dark if the curtains hadn't been pulled and the sliding door left open.

Velvet gasped and rushed out onto the patio, all thought of food forgotten.

The faunus' stomach lurched as she glanced over the edge trying to keep the worst from her mind. Shaking in relief, Velvet looked over an empty street. There was no body down below.

 _He's alive._

Of course, that only brought up the next obvious question: Where was Glen?

Foregoing the stairs, the bunny faunus simply dropped all the way to ground level, using her aura to help absorb the impact before rushing back inside. Scrambling around in her room, Velvet dug out her scroll from her bedcovers and immediately dialed Coco.

"Coco! Coco he's gone!" cried the bunny.

"Hold your horses," yawned the gunner. "What happened?"

"Glen!" Velvet repeated, the words pouring out like a waterfall. "I went and gave him food but I forgot the bowl so I went back to get it and he was gone and I don't know where-"

A string of curses burst from the other end of the phone as Coco Adel expressed her thorough displeasure with the situation, including a few choice words on how she would rearrange certain features on the runaway's body. After she had calmed down sufficiently, the huntress in training got down to business.

"He's only been to the docks and the police station, cafe, and the docks, right?" enquired the gunner. "So you go check the docks and I'll head to the cafe, because I doubt hed go back to the police. If he hasn't gone to either location then we have a real issue. Should that happen I'll call the Oz, but for now let's work with what we have. Keep your eyes peeled!"

With that Coco hung up, getting ready to head out on a search for the missing alien. Velvet started out the door, calling to her mom on the way out.

"Hey mum! I'm heading out!"

Velvet's mother poked her head out of the office in the back.

"Where are you headed dear?"

"The boy that Ozpin wanted us to watch over has run off and I need to find him," Velvet said, bouncing from one foot to the other.

"The tenant that I've been cooking for the last few days?" Mrs. Scarlatina signed. "Very well. Go, but be safe you hear?"

"Yes mum!" Velvet said, voice trailing behind her as she whipped out the front door once again.

The bunny faunus pounded down the pavement, eyes searching passing pedestrians. Her ears twitched in agitation as she took the fastest route to the docks. It took under ten minutes for the aura empowered rabbit to make her way to the start of the docks when Velvet hit a roadblock.

A crowd of faunus protesters and picketers had gathered around the external fence of the port, yelling, chanting, waving signs.

 _No no no,_ thought Velvet. _I'll never see him from down here._

Velvet channeled aura through her powerful legs, easily hopping fifteen feet straight up onto the roof of a small shop. She scanned every face she could see before moving on to the next building and repeating the process but it was a hopeless endeavor. There were simply too many people moving about for any one person to be recognized. Just as Velvet was beginning to give up hope, a commotion in the middle of the crowd drew her attention.

 _What's going… Oh no._

* * *

I made my way back from the docks feeling lighter than I had in… well, days really. I had, for the first time since that coffeeshop realization, hope. That to me made all the difference in the world. It still hurt, yes… but it wasn't crippling me any longer. I supposed that's what my mom meant in the dream.

Making my way carefully back to the fence, I began to hear chanting and jeering. Well, that certainly didn't bode well. I came around a corner of shipping containers and stopped dead in my tracks.

The reason that there was so much noise was because the few protesters I had seen earlier had swelled into a mob scene. Well, it wasn't really a mob scene so much as a bunch of passionate, angry faunus that were shouting at nothing much. Still, it wasn't exactly the sort of environment I wanted to walk through.

It wasn't as if I was going to have much choice in the matter though. I very much doubted that there'd be another spot where I could climb over.

 _Even if I did, I would have to walk past the same spot to make my way back to the apartment._

I walked up to the fence and put a hand on it, hooking my fingers into the chain link.

 _Screw it. Might as well go ahead now._

I clambered carefully over the fence, only getting hung up for a moment as my pants got hung up on the top. From there I dropped down into the crowd and began to walk away.

Considering how many signs were being held up that read "SDC", I thought that few of the faunus would give me a second thought. After all, I wasn't affiliated with the SDC in any way shape or form.

Well, that illusion was shortly dispelled.

I was constantly jostled, having to fight my way through throngs of people in order to try and get back to my temporary home. That was to be expected with such a large crowd. What bothered me was how aggressive the crowd felt. Faunus would glare at me as I walked past, not letting me out of their sight till I had passed. Several went out of their way to slam a shoulder into me or give me a shove, usually with a threatening or insulting comment to go along with it. The entire assembly had a hostile, malignant feel that was seriously starting to worry me.

A knot was starting to form in my gut, some unknown sixth sense warning me of danger as I pressed on.

 _I need to get out of here now. Something is seriously off and I don't like it at all._

I closed in on an exit, keeping my head down and avoiding eye contact. Another body slammed into mine, stopping my progress forward.

"Excuse me, I'm sorry," I murmured, trying to brush by the individual. Two large hands reached out and shoved me back.

"Where do you think you're going, _human_ ," snarled a deep voice in front of me. I looked up to stare into green slitted eyes. The faunus before me looked to be a lizard of some kind, considering the eyes and the fact that he had a slitted nose that reminded me vaguely of He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named. Voldemort. There, I said it.

All references aside, the unique facial features were hardly a point of interest to me. What was a major point of interest was that the dude was built.

Now, I'm not a small guy by any standards. At six foot tall, weighing over a buck eighty and built like a linebacker, I had some physical presence. That said, the man in front of me was _stacked._ He was easily two inches taller than me and every bit as broad in the shoulders with some pretty defined musculature. And all of that muscle was in my way, aggressively keeping me from getting out.

"Hey, I'm not trying to cause any trouble man," I said as calmly as I could, trying to keep the nerves and adrenalin from causing my voice to waver. "I just want to get through."

"That's too bad," he hissed, eyes narrowing. "You should have chosen a different route."

"I'm sorry, that's my fault," I replied, trying to stay as non-confrontational as possible. "I didn't have much of a choice. I'll just be on my way and get out of your hair."

The figure in front of me crossed his arms, bearing a tattoo of what appeared to be a stylized wolf head.

"Know what this is?" he asked as if I should recognise the symbol offhand. I decided to go with honesty being the best policy. A mistake, as it turned out.

"Uhh… It's a tattoo of a wolf's head." A low chuckle met my words, a small grin splitting the face of the man in front of me.

 _There is something seriously wrong here. This guy seems a little unstable and it's freaking me the hell out._

"No, it's so much more than that. It's what you humans will have to answer to, sooner or later." I opened my mouth to protest, not at all sure what was going on.

Thank goodness I was still so keyed up or I might not have been able to step back from the big left hand that whipped inches from my chin.

"C'mon, I'm not trying to - gah!" A grunt was torn from my lips as my assailant pushed forward and I was forced to throw up an arm to absorb another wild roundhouse.

 _Frickin' A, this dude is out to get me._

As the faunus tried to move forwards again, I stopped backpedaling and planted a foot. My other leg powered forward in a swift snap kick that buried itself in his gut. The shock of the blow ran up my leg as I yanked the appendage back before it could be snagged.

 _What the hell? Is every day ab day for this guy?_

Still, it had the desired effect of checking the faunus' forward movement. I settled back with arms out and palms open.

"Hey, let's just go our separate ways man. I don't want anyone to get hurt," I tried once more, hoping against hope that the fanatic in front of me would see sense. Of course not, right? That'd be too easy.

"Oh, I'm not worried about getting hurt," the gravelly tones threatened before stepping in to throw a jab at my face. I slapped the blows to the side. It wasn't particularly difficult to redirect jabs or step out of the way of hooks, but once again me trying to de-escalate the fight had put me at the disadvantage. I was, quite literally, on the back foot. I needed to regain the initiative.

Finally, I saw my opening and went for it. Another jab was thrown, but this time I slipped my head to the side allowing his meaty fist to fly through the space my head occupied. I then stepped into his guard and countered with my own left hook into the faunus' ribs. If I had expected a solid impact, I wasn't disappointed. In all actuality, the impact was _too_ solid - it felt like I was hitting a wall, not someone's torso. There was virtually no give whatsoever.

As it was, my left hand immediately started throbbing.

 _Okay, that hurt. Note to self: strike with the heels of your hands, not your fist._

The faunus roared and grabbed me around the shoulders as we entered a stand up wrestling match. I ignored one of his arms flailing into my ribs (thanks adrenalin) in favor of setting up a throw. Hooking a leg, I threw my weight forward and drove my opponent into the ground.

Once again, me trying to exit the fight almost ended it.

Instead of capitalizing on my position and establishing side control or a full mount, I tried to use this opportunity to stand up and back out again. The faunus, coiled up on his back, kicked out and caught me in the side.

The force of the blow was such that I staggered back and landed on my butt. Scrambling to my feet I tried to run off, but I didn't make it more than a few stumbling steps before I was tackled from behind.

As I hit the ground I squirmed desperately to face my opponent so he wouldn't be able to take my back. All I managed was getting right-side up as the faunus straddled my waist, starting to rain down blows from above.

 _Damn it Glen! He's not going to let you go unless you incapacitate him! You've let yourself get put in an abysmal position!_

Well, I was committed to the fight now. There was no more hesitancy in my actions.

I bucked my hips, throwing my attacker forwards and off balance. The faunus caught himself with his arms, hands splayed on either side of my head. Wrapping my arms around his back, I pinned us chest to chest in a position that made it very difficult for him to throw any effective blows.

Not for lack of trying on his part, mind you; my muscles strained to hold him in place as he attempted to push back up to a sitting position. Raising my hips into a bridge, I tried to roll us both over and complete a reversal.

No such luck.

Just as we reached the balance point, the fanatic realized what was happening and managed to stick out a leg and rip an arm free in time to stop the transition. All I achieved was losing the initiative again as my attacker sat back up, free of my grip and started to throw powerful punches once more.

Thrashing side to side, I tried to control his wrists but several blows slipped through. They were relatively insignificant - mostly glancing punches that lacked real power. Then, a single fist snuck through at just the right time to nail me in the nose. My head snapped back and hit the pavement, causing my vision to flash white, before briefly settling black. It was all I could do just to try and cover my head while I recovered.

 _Need to - get him - off - NOW._

As my vision swam back, I let loose with several hard blows to my assailants crotch.

From where I lay, with him straddling my stomach, I couldn't put much power into the three quick strikes. Fortunately I didn't have to. The first two punches met with the same kind of resistance that I had hurt my hand earlier.

 _Balls of steel?_ I though just as my third strike connected. This time, I got the reaction I was looking for.

With the faunus now briefly distracted by the worst pain a man knows, I tried once more and completed a reversal. Now I was the one on top.

First, I leaned forward and latched one hand around his throat, squeezing as hard as I could. Twisting my torso to generate as much force as possible, I drove the heel of my other hand into my assailants face. Over and over again I struck, feeling nose and cheekbones crack under the repeated assault. Any time I felt like he was trying something, I simply stopped the one handed assault on his face long enough to dig an elbow into his testicles once more, and that helped take the fight right out of him.

The faunus' hands scratched at my arm, trying to pry it off his neck. Blood streamed out of his misshapen nose, his face was cut, bleeding, and swelling, and turning a different shade of red because of difficulty breathing, but the guy would just _not_ drop. I don't know how long I stayed there, but finally it ended in more ways than one.

Let me take a step back here. In rugby when the guy carrying the ball went down and the opposing team was attempting to pull it out of his hands, you were supposed to "ruck over". What that boiled down to was just building up a head of steam and destroying the players that were over your downed man.

I landed a final blow on my opponent and felt his muscles go slack. Immediately afterwards as tried to stand and leave the area, I felt like one of those poor guys that I had hit so often.

In short, I got "rucked over".

One of my original attackers buddies must have finally decided to run in and take me out. I struck the pavement once more, wind knocked out of me. Gasping, I tried to turn and face my new assailant when several other faunus jumped in and started kicking at me. It was all I could to just to curl up and cover my head and neck as I tried to fight my way back to my feet.

"No you don't!" yelled a familiar Australian voice. As the kicking stopped I looked up in time to see four of my assailants already out cold, and Velvet working on the fifth.

 _What the hell … Velvet?_

The bunny slid under a punch with a liquid grace that made it look effortless as she launched into a spinning kick that sent the last attacker sliding several meters away.

"Velvet?" I asked out loud this time. The faunus spun around and hoisted me to my feet.

"Let's go, Glen. We have to get out of here," Velvet said, leading me off through the crowd. We exited the mob as a police line was forming, the rabbit leading me down a familiar street towards her family's apartment block.

Velvet pulled her scroll out of her pocket.

"Coco? ...Yeah, I found him. I'm bringing him back home. ...Okay." The call terminated, and Velvet walked on.

I limped behind her, pain growing with every step I took. Adrenalin was a fantastic thing for ignoring injuries, but when it left you… you felt all of the impacts you didn't earlier.

And I had taken quite a few blows.

 _Okay, let's see what's injured.. Head? Oh yeah. I've got a kicking headache … Pun not intended. Ribs? Breathing sucks a little, so let's go with yes. Arms are sore and achy, but not bad. Legs good, save for the right ankle._

Categorizing my injuries at least helped me make it to the apartment. The bell above the door rang shrilly. The woman at the front counter looked up, giving a smile.

"Velvet! Did you find-" her eyes fell on me and her expression immediately ran through shock and surprise before settling on motherly concern. "Oh dear, what happened to you?"

"He got caught in a protest some White Fang members were attending mum," Velvet answered, supporting me as I limped through the lobby.

 _Huh. So this is Velvet's mom that owns the place._

The elder rabbit faunus clicked her tongue in disapproval, before motioning Velvet and I over to her.

"Sit him down in my office sweetie. I'll get the medical kit out and clean him up. Okay?" Velvet just nodded in response and guided me into the back, sitting me down in a small office. The space itself was full of stacks of paperwork that were neatly organized on a desk, and several photos and framed certificates hung from the walls.

Velvet stood to the side awkwardly as I tried to get comfortable. Well, comfortable is the wrong word. "Least painful" would probably be more accurate.

"Velvet? How did you do that?" I asked thickly. Thickly because my lower lip was swollen and split, slurring certain letters.

"Do what?" the faunus started.

"I struggled to take out a single one of those- what did you call them?"

"White Fang?"

"Yeah, a White Fang member. I struggled with one but you took out four or five in quick succession no problem. How?" Nothing against Velvet, but she was half a foot shorter than me, and probably weighed at least fifty pounds less if not more. So how on Earth - sorry, Remnant - did she so quickly dispatch all of those thugs?

"I … well, I'm a student of Professor Ozpin. I'm training to be a huntress," Velvet admitted somewhat reluctantly.

"And I was so proud when she was accepted," added Mrs. Scarlatina, entering the room with a red cloth bag and wet towel. "Now, let's see what we've got here."

Velvet's mom gently dabbed at a cut above my eye, cleaning and drying it before a bandage went on. The same went for my forearms that had been scratched up, but this time she put on rubbing alcohol to clean it up.

I tell you - rubbing alcohol still burns like all hell regardless of what your pain tolerance is. Teeth clenched, I did my best to avoid flinching as gauze patches were taped onto the wounds.

"It looks like the rest is going to be mostly bruising dear. You're already sporting a black eye. Where else did you get hit?" Mrs. Scarlatina enquired.

"The ribs mostly," I groaned.

"How badly?"

"Not too bad," I muttered glancing away, not wanting to reveal the full scope of my injuries. Mrs. Scarlatina just raised her eyebrows slightly.

"I suppose you wouldn't mind breathing in deeply for me then?" she asked cheerily.

Welp. So much for hiding it. I tried, but as I expanded my chest beyond a shallow breath the pain grew before I winced at the stabbing sensations.

"Thought so," Velvet's mom frowned, all business once more. "Do you know if you broke any ribs?" I just shrugged helplessly. There was no point in trying to hide anything. Just like my mom, it seemed she would find everything out sooner or later. I felt a little nostalgic sadness creep in at that, settling in my gut.

"Very well then. I'll check for any broken ones. Would you take off your shirt, please?" I froze like a deer in the headlights, unsure of what to do. I didn't want to ignore Mrs. Scarlatina, but… I didn't want to pull my shirt off either. Especially not in front of Velvet. A quick glance at Velvet showed she was clearly having similar thoughts. This was … pretty dang awkward.

"Well… Uhh, you see…" I trailed off, unsure of what I wanted to say. Mrs. Scarlatina just sighed, turning to her daughter.

"Velvet, would you be a dear and get some ice packs from the freezer?" The bunny quickly nodded, moving out of the room.

"Glen. Shirt, please."

I was still pretty darn uncomfortable as I pulled the cotton tee over my head, exposing my torso. Velvet's mom ran her hands over my chest and back, fingers probing for any broken bone. There were some pretty big mottled purple and red bruises on my sides and chest. Finally satisfied, Mrs. Scarlatina stood back.

"You seem to have escaped with nothing worse than some nasty bruising. You can put your shirt back on, dear."

I did as she asked as quickly as I could - which turned out to be not that quickly in actuality. It was painful to stretch my arms out above my head, but I managed.

"So you're the one that my daughter is assigned to watch over," Mrs. Scarlatina said.

"Yes ma'am."

"I don't know why you're so important to Professor Ozpin," she frowned. "But you had better not put my daughter in any danger. I know the path she has chosen, but I do not want you contributing to the danger inherent in it. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes ma'am," I said in a small voice, shrinking back in the chair.

"Good," the woman smiled, cheerful once more. The bell for the front door rang, causing Mrs. Scarlatina to move out the office. "I have to see to that. I'll be back in a moment. Excuse me Velvet."

Velvet slipped through the door after her mother left, handing me a frigid blue pack that I immediately placed on the back of my neck.

 _Ohh that's good,_ I moaned internally. The icy coolness was helping combat my headache and slight nausea. Velvet and I sat there in silence until a certain someone burst through the door.

"What the hell were you thinking?" growled Coco, storming over to where I was sitting. She looked me up and down, noticing the cuts and bruising. If I thought that was going to win me any sympathy, I was sorely mistaken.

"And you managed to get beat up! Vel, what the hell happened to him?" Coco asked, rounding on the faunus.

"I-I found him back towards the docks, trying to get through a protest. He got jumped by several White Fang members. I took them out and got Glen out of there but not before he got beat up," Velvet reported nervously.

"Congratulations Foray! You could have just wandered the town till we found you, but noooo. You had to go get involved in a brawl in a mob with the White Fang! Thankfully Velvet was able to find you to rescue you."

"I managed to take one of them out," I muttered, trying to defend myself. Coco just threw her arms up, rolling her eyes.

"Well whoop-de-fucking-do. I'm so proud of you," she congratulated, voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Coco Adel! Watch your language!" interjected Velvets mother.

"I'm sorry Mrs. S," Coco winced slightly at the telling-off. "I'm just pissed that this idiot here went and took a jaunt around town and got involved with the White Fang of all groups. No one is supposed to know that you're not from here!"

"Oh, fine time to be telling me that now," I shot back, beginning to get a little riled up. "Why not tell me that earlier? Besides, I doubt me getting attacked by a White Fang member or two is going to tell anyone that I'm not from this world!"

"Maybe not," conceded Coco, "But I'd rather not have you even appear on their radar! You don't f-screw around with the Fang. Why couldn't you have just told Vel where you were going?"

"I wanted to be alone," I muttered.

"And your nice apartment wasn't enough alone for you? Besides, you could still be alone and _tell_ us where you're headed-"

"I get it!" I burst out, raising my voice for the first time. "I realize that may not have been the smartest move, but considering all that's happened you can hardly blame me for not quite having my head screwed on straight!" I paused, breathing heavily.

"And I went to the docks because I wanted some finality! I wanted to try and pick myself up off the ground and thought maybe I could find something there. And you know what? I managed to come to terms with some of it. But just because I'm picking myself up and trying to move on doesn't mean it doesn't hurt!" I cried, my voice starting to tremble. "I just lost everything I ever knew including my whole family!" The emotion swelled in my throat, causing me to barely choke out the next words.

"I just - I miss them so much," I sobbed, trying to fight back the tears that were rolling down my cheeks. The emotion of

"Oh honey," came the soft voice of Mrs. Scarlatina. The rabbit faunus drew me into a hug, holding my trembling frame close to her own.

"It's fine," I said through gritted teeth. "I'm fine. It's okay. I'll see them again." Velvet's mom released me, concern written on her face.

"Well, I don't want to presume. But if you need anything I'll be here, okay?"

"Thank you, Mrs. Scarlatina," I smiled gratefully. I managed to haul my emotions back to a semi-reasonable level, wiping the tears off my face.

 _Ow. Still have a black eye,_ I winced. I still missed my family, but I was determined to move forward. _At least I have some people who care about me._

And I did; Mrs. Scarlatina, who seemed to treat me like a surrogate son - Velvet, who was willing to battle her discomfort to watch over me day in and day out - hell, even Coco in her own interesting way at least cared for my well being.

"Well, I'm sure you'll be more careful in the future, won't you Glen?" Mrs. Scarlatina asked. I nodded slowly, before the woman turned to the two younger females along with me. "Now, what's this I hear about Glen being from another world?"

* * *

Glynda frowned at the headmaster, eyes glinting behind her glasses. Despite the mage's vast respect for the man in front of her it didn't stop Ozpin for earning her ire when she felt it was deserved. And right now Glynda definitely felt as if Ozpin deserved it.

"Glynda, I can understand where you're coming from, but if you would just-"

"Just what, Ozpin? This boy could potentially very damaging to us should certain _individuals_ come to find him," Glynda frowned.

Ozpin simply sat calm and collected in the face of his Deputy's icy glare, sipping on a cup of coffee.

"He is named Glen, Glynda. Glen Foray. Please refer to him as a person, not an object." The mage in question let out a bark of laughter in response.

"If you cared so much about _Glen_ as an individual then why did you not bring him to Beacon?"

"I did not leave him unguarded. There are two second year students who can look after him-"

"And what of when they return to school?"

"I will have other arrangements made by then," Ozpin confidently replied. Glynda Goodwitch crossed her arms, unimpressed.

"Why could they have not been made now?" Ozpin opened his mouth to reply, but was saved from answering by the ringing of an incoming call.

"Excuse me for a moment Glynda, I must take this." The mage scoffed, but didn't make a motion to stop the headmaster as he accepted the call.

"Ozpin!" barked a voice over the screen. "What's this I hear about you waiving the offenses of a certain Glen Foray?" Ozpin pushed his glasses up his nose, leaning closer to the screen.

"It is a delight to talk to you once more, Councilor Magnus," the headmaster smoothly replied.

"I don't give a damn for the formalities, Ozpin! I want answers!" Glynda and Ozpin heard heavy breathing coming through the speakers as the councilor tried to contain his anger.

"I had reason to believe he was not guilty of the crimes levied on him."

"Reason? What reason!" growled Magnus in response. "We can't even find any trace of this boy in any system! He's completely undocumented!"

"He lived far off the grid until recently. His village was overrun by Grimm and I found reason to watch over him," Ozpin easily lied.

"What reason is that? You've done a great job of deflecting around the issue, Ozpin, but I'm sick and tired of not getting a straight answer! Start explaining all this now," the councilor shouted.

"He had to watch his family die; the boy is not quite in his right mind yet. As for why, it was a promise that I made to his mother a long time back when we were acquaintances."

"Oh, you just happened to make a promise that involves taking care of this kid? Forgive me if I don't so easily believe you," snarled Magnus.

"I am a man of my word," Ozpin said simply. There was a poignant silence that followed, the air thick with tension even through the phone. Only the clank of machinery broke in as the gears continued to grind their way around.

 _Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock._

"Where might this Glen Foray be right now?" the councilor asked more calmly.

"He is staying in lodging in town," the headmaster said, fingers steepled before him.

"Very well. Don't think this is the last you will hear of this, _headmaster,_ " came Magnus' pompous tones, throwing out the title like it was an insult. The call terminated a brief second later, the screen in front of Ozpin winking out of existence. The wizard simply continued staring at the screen contemplatively until his attention was dragged away by Glynda Goodwitch.

"I really don't care much for that man," frowned Glynda. "He is the one that keeps inciting the council against you, isn't he?"

"Indeed. He fears me because I have power over him. It threatens him and the position he holds, especially as we frequently clash on issues. So, he seeks to tear me down," Ozpin sighed.

"And half the council follows him, or else is too afraid to stand up even if they disagree. All this over power, position, monetary gain, _comfort,_ " hissed the deputy. "It's sickening."

"I agree," soothed Ozpin, "That is why I did not bring him here immediately. Because of my rather … unorthodox methods of quickly pulling Glen out of the station, there were bound to be some higher-ups in the council who were rubbed raw at such action. So, I simply forestalled some of their complaints by leaving Glen in Vale where he falls under their jurisdiction. If he were here in Beacon, he would have been under my jurisdiction."

"Wouldn't that leave him out of their reach?" inquired Glynda. Ozpin just shook his silver hair slowly in response.

"Yes, it would have. However, that would have simply brought the council down harder upon me. I am not as influential as I once was, and the council is still seeking to get one over me. As unfortunate as it may be, participating in their politics has become more or less a necessity." The wizard propped his spectacles up on his forehead, rubbing tiredly at his eyes.

"All we need to bring him to Beacon is a good reason," the headmaster mused. "Perhaps it were a question of his safety…"

At this Glynda looked up sharply, eyes narrowing as she stared down Ozpin.

"You wouldn't deliberately put him in danger, would you?" Ozpin didn't immediately answer, which was all the deputy needed to hear. She pursed her lips containing a hundred angry words. Instead Glynda turned and stalked out of the office, shutting the door aggressively behind her.

 _Your disapproval is noted,_ Ozpin thought, _but Glen is much too dangerous to be left in the city. If anyone learned of who he was - whether that be the council or group of ill intent - he could not be adequately protected. He must be brought to Beacon._

The headmaster sipped on his coffee, staring out towards the City of Vale.

 _Whatever the cost._

 **A/N: So, it's been a while ... relatively. I hope you had a great Christmas and have a happy new years. Anyway, I was pushing for weekly updates on Friday, but I didn't put one out last week. That's for two reasons:**

 **1) I had family over for Christmas and I really wanted to spend a bunch of time with them. That, and doing a heck of a lot of research on used vehicles and finally buying a (new) car. But you didn't come hear to hear about my life, did you? (Apologies to those who did).**

 **2) This chapter was a bear to write. Not in the sense of putting out ideas on paper. I had most of it written in time for the weekly update, but I didn't want to put it out. What became extremely difficult was portraying well the first portion of this chapter before the switch to Velvet POV. I mean, how do you show the kind of mental/emotional processes and struggles really well in a manner that makes sense and isn't overbearing? Most importantly, how do you show such legitimate feelings and pulling yourself out of a semi-depressive state accurately and do it well?**

 **Straight up, the hell if I know. Well, I have a good idea, but it's very difficult for me to lay out well. So, I took the extra time to try and clean things up and work it over and ended up adding more to it. Even so, I felt in slight that the dream was a bit of a cop out. Still, I couldn't really think of a better way to communicate all that internal dialogue and most importantly the _ideas_ behind it. I know I'm not the best writer, but I want to do well enough to create a good story that does my ideas justice.**

 **I'm still not entirely satisfied with it, and I doubt I'd ever be. So instead of keeping it to myself forever and fiddling or waiting for a stroke of genius I'm going to put it up and move on to greener pastures. I should have another chapter next Friday. Thanks again for all the favorites and reviews! I appreciate them a lot and it certainly motivates me to keep it up. I'd love to hear any thoughts or constructive criticism you guys have. See you on the flip side.**


	5. Chapter 5

It was hardly a shock when Ozpin knocked on my apartment door. In fact, I was expecting him. How, you might ask?

I haven't taken that many hits to the head. Counting to seven still isn't extraordinarily difficult.

The headmaster had promised that he would be back in a week when he dropped me off, so here he was. I picked myself gingerly up off the couch, walking stiffly over to the door.

Twisting the handle, I pulled the door open and stood aside.

"Good afternoon sir," I said as Ozpin walked into my apartment. "How are you?"

"Just fine, Mister Foray. And yourself?" the headmaster asked.

"I'm good." I spoke out of force of habit, so used to the routine that I didn't think about any of the injuries I sustained recently. With the door closed, I turned to see a solitary eyebrow raised in doubt as Ozpin leaned on his cane.

"Forgive me, Mister Foray, but you do look a little worse for wear. What happened to you?" Ozpin enquired politely.

"Would you believe me if I said I fell down some stairs?" I joked, making my way back to the living room. The headmaster simply chuckled and shook his head.

"No, I would not."

"Well, I got into a fight near the docks. I was beat up a bit, but I'm okay. Just sore and bruised right now, but that'll fade," I admitted, lowering myself back into the leather couch. It was a bit cold, so I shuffled around until I found the warmth from the spot I had been occupying just moments ago.

"Oh really? Why were you down at the docks?"

"I was…" I trailed off, clamping down on the words. My body seemed to recognize that talking about it was going to be painful, as if facing the issue was going to cause me to relive it once more. Aside from that, it felt intensely personal, something I wasn't quite comfortable sharing.

"I…" Once more my voice just gave up and I withdrew into myself, unwilling to finish the story. Thankfully Ozpin seemed to put two and two together. His brown eyes softened around the edges, seeking out my wandering ones.

"You will carry them with you Glen. Your family will be as close to you as you let them be," the headmaster said softly. "I'm sure they wouldn't want you to be so grief stricken. Remember and honor them through your actions."

 _That's oddly close to what my mom said in the dream._

I didn't question how he had come to that conclusion so quickly; I was just glad he had understood and I didn't have to talk through it and make him understand. A silence descended on our small gathering before Ozpin spoke once more.

"I see you have gotten some new clothes. I assume that Miss Adele did not have a hand in picking them out?"

"No she did," I laughed a little, glad to move on to a different topic of conversation.

Hadn't _that_ been interesting. Right after Mrs. Scarlatina had accepted that I wasn't from this world, the older faunus had turned to me.

"Glen, dear, you need a shower," she said calmly. As if the huge bomb that had been dropped was nothing. Then again, I must have smelled pretty darn ripe if that was the first thing that was said. I wasn't going to argue though; my skin was grimy and being clean would be a great sensation - that and a hot and cold shower sounded fantastic for my aching body. There was just one small snag.

"Uhh… Mrs. Scarlatina? I don't exactly have any toiletries or anything, so … I, uhhh … I don't have any cash or anything with me either…" I managed. I was loath to ask for help when I knew I couldn't pay them back.

"That's okay Glen. If you can hold on for twenty minutes or so, I'll have the girls go and get you some basic necessities," Mrs. Scarlatina smiled. Velvet nodded to accede to her parent's request, but Coco seemed less likely to forgive my unintended transgressions.

"Like hell I-" muttered Coco, but was cut off by Velvet's mother.

"Necessities and clothes, Coco," frowned the elder faunus. "I'll pay you back. Try to keep the clothing to something in a reasonable price range, will you?" The fashionista just huffed and stalked out of the room with Velvet in tow.

Shortly thereafter I was in a steaming hot shower.

It was heaven. Heaven, I tell you.

After I had washed my hair and body, I simply stood under the water until the temperature started dropping. Still, the extended soak in the heat had done some wonders for me. My body was still sore, but it wasn't nearly as bad as when I had first gotten in. Towelling off, I opened the plastic grocery bag of clothes for the first time since Coco had handed them off to me.

A mistake, as it turned out.

Inside the bag was an assortment of fairly nice shorts, pants, and shirts, with a couple belts to boot. They looked to be my size and were made of a comfortable fabric. All in all it was a pretty nice haul - or rather, it would have been if every single piece of clothing wasn't a bright neon color.

Purple, yellow, green and pink stared up at me like a monster from art class hell.

 _What the heck? Nothing in here is going to even work. Everything clashes and there are no neutral colors at all. Is she colorblind or -_

 _Oh, ha ha._

"Nice!" I yelled from inside the bathroom, even though the fashionista had no chance of hearing me. "Nice job! That's real petty of you!"

Well… I suppose that I would have to make the best of a bad situation. I pulled out all the articles of clothing and finally decided on pink pants and a pink collared shirt.

Hey, if Rickie Fowler could make it work then so could I. Unfortunately the only belt colors available were lime green and purple.

 _I'm not that desperate. Besides, these fit well enough that I doubt they'll come off my body._

So, here I sat in front of the headmaster in a fluorescent monotone.

"I would have thought that she'd give me something really nice to wear, but she managed to outfit me in this … this …" I repeated, unable to find a word to convey my feelings.

"Bright clothing?" Ozpin chuckled.

"That's one word," I grumbled. "I was searching for something a little more colorful. Pun intended." The headmaster laughed once more, pulling out a folder full of white sheets.

"Just a few administrative details Mister Foray." The headmaster handed me the small accordion folder. "I have registered you as a citizen of Vale. In this packet is the paperwork required for such a title. Birth certificate and passport, among other things. I suggest you keep them somewhere safe."

I flipped open the passport and glanced through the information.

 **Citizen of Vale**

 **Glen Jason Foray**

 **03/22/5947**

"Uhh…" I asked hesitantly, stopping reading. "So, this looks like the start of my birthdate. March twenty-second. But the year is…?"

"It is the year fifty-nine sixty-four right now. I simply took your age of seventeen and subtracted," Ozpin informed me.

"But how did you know I was seventeen?" I asked.

"You gave it to the police with the rest of your information. I've read all the transcripts."

 _Well, if that don't beat all._

"We'll Mister Foray, is there anything you want to ask me?"

Well, yes. Quite frankly I had an endless supply of questions that I could offer up, but nothing that the headmaster only could answer. Most of them would be served better by another trip to the RemNet cafe. Or the library - not that Coco would tell me where that was.

"Not right now, thanks," I dismissed. Ozpin just nodded and stood, gathering his cane.

"Very well. I believe that we are done here." As he exited the headmaster turned back to me, staring over his shaded spectacles. "Mister Foray. Do try to stay out of trouble - and I would find a way to apologize to Miss Adel if she has gone out of her way to dress you like that." With that parting shot, the headmaster left the apartment, chuckling to himself.

"Funny," I muttered, looking down at the bright pink I was wearing. Still, I supposed that it would be better to get back in Coco's good side rather than leave it like it was now. It's not like I knew very many people.

My opportunity for rebuilding the bridges burnt would come shortly by way of Velvet Scarlatina.

"Hey Glen," Velvet said shyly, "Our school is starting up in a few days and Coco wanted to have a little got together, and we-we're wondering if we could use your apartment for it…" The faunus fidgeted nervously while Coco stood silently behind with her arms crossed.

"Sure. Would you want me to stay here or find somewhere else to hang?" I asked with a small grin.

"Oh! No, you could stay," Velvet hastened to reassure me.

"Find somewhere else," Coco said at the same time.

"I'll stay here, I guess," I said faking hesitation and fighting the grin that was threatening to grow on my face as I watched Coco's own expression darken slightly.

 _Take it, Adel. You're not the only one that can troll._ Ozpin's suggestion floated back to mind, stopping my internal celebration. _Oh right. Let's make amends, not drive her any further up the wall._

"Uhh … well, if you wanted I could cook something for your get together." My own attempt at doing something to bridge the gap was only met with a snort of derision from Coco.

"Oh really? Forgive me if I don't want to poison my teammates," she laughed. I crossed my own arms and stared back.

"What, you just assume that I can't cook because I'm a guy? That's sexist."

"That's not what I said. I just doubt you can. You haven't exactly been kicking up a storm in the kitchen since you arrived."

"Forgive me for not being able to create a culinary masterpiece out of Pumpkin Pete's cereal and milk, the only things I have on hand," I joked. "The thing is more sugar and marshmallow than cereal, I swear."

"Still-"

"C'mon," I burst in. "I enjoy a good meal, and in the words of my dad, 'I like to cook because I like to eat.'" The quote slipped out without a second thought, a funny insight of my father I had repeated oft before.

"I…" The stitches that held my heart together slowly began pulling apart. "Nevermind. Forget I said anything. I'll find somewhere else to go." There was a tinge of gruffness in my voice as I strained to keep emotion from flooding it. I pushed forward, ignoring Velvet's tentative hand on my shoulder and headed for the stairs.

"Glen?" Coco's voice stopped me in my tracks as effectively as a brick wall. "If… you want you can stay and … cook, I suppose."

"I don't want your pity," I growled. "I'm just wanting to help you guys out and maybe meet some new people. You know, because I know exactly no one save you two, your mom, and Ozpin. And shocker, I'm still depressed over losing my family and lonely because I still have no one outside of a very few acquaintances."

"I was just trying to be nice!" shot back Coco.

"I was too!" I said, the words uttered with slipping self control, emotion and intensity injected into every syllable. With that I turned on my heel and stalked off down the stairs out the front door.

It didn't take very long for my emotion to settle down and regret to settle in.

 _C'mon Glen!_ I berated myself internally. _Since when did you just jump down people's throats when they're offering you an olive branch?_

 _Probably since you suffered serious emotional trauma from the situation you find yourself in,_ something inside me suggested.

 _Excuses._

 _It's a pretty legitimate excuse._

 _Oh, can it me! It still doesn't mean that what I did was right!_

That was the kicker, wasn't it? Cheesy as it is, two wrongs don't make a right. I was hurting, yes; that didn't make hurting others justified however. More understandable? Yes. Justifiable? No.

Giving myself a few more minutes to collect my thoughts and dispel emotions (here's looking at you, pride) I stood and made my way back to the apartment.

"What's going on dear?" asked Mrs. Scarlatina from the front desk.

"Nothing much ma'am," I called back. "On a totally unrelated note, do you know where Coco is?" Velvet's mom just chuckled.

"I think she's still upstairs. Good luck Glen."

I nodded my head in appreciation and slowly walked the several flights up.

 _Well, here goes nothing._

Opening the door to my apartment, I looked around and saw Coco looking around with a critical eye, as if wondering how best to redecorate.

"Hey, uhh, Coco?"

"What?" Came the immediate reply, her voice flat.

"I just … wanted to apologize for throwing that offer back in your face. You were just trying to be nice, and I … uhh … I shouldn't have done that." She spun around and looked at me with an eyebrow cocked, hand on hip.

"What are you, a goody two shoes?"

"No," I said, biting back a bitter comment that rose to my lips. "It's just like I said earlier. I don't know many people, and I don't want to… you know, have any conflict between us."

 _And I'm not too stuck up to admit when I'm wrong,_ I thought, though I didn't voice it. Nervousness coiled around my gut and chest as Coco continued to stare me down. Finally she looked away with a deep sigh.

"Alright. It's fine. I shouldn't have been so hard on you either," she admitted.

"So, we're cool then?" I asked. Coco hesitated for a second before responding.

"Yeah. I guess so."

"Does that mean you'll buy me some different clothes?" I joked hopefully, glad that this had been resolved.

"Don't push your luck Foray," Coco grumbled, but I caught the small smile on her features. "I suppose the offer still stands if you really want to cook something."

"Yeah. Sure, I'll do something," I smiled back. "Do you think you could get me my old clothes back by the time your friends show up?"

"Well, they're coming over tomorrow and I'm throwing this together at the last minute soo… Nope," Coco said, popping the 'p'.

"No? It's been two days."

"Yup."

"And it's still not washed."

"Nope. I have a lot of laundry to do," she grinned evilly. "Enjoy being an eyesore."

"I… You… Oh, whatever. There's no winning with you," I sighed, giving up on not being bright pink.

 _First impressions are important._

"And don't forget it," she grinned, leaving me to continue her planning.

 _Well, I guess it's time to get some groceries._

* * *

"Thanks for coming with me Velvet," I said as we walked down the aisles of a local store.

"No problem," the girl smiled with her australian accent.

It was genuinely a big help to have her here; if I couldn't find foods or spices or things of that nature in the store I wanted to get the closest equivalent I could. Aside from that, I didn't have any money. And I didn't know where to go. So yeah - a pretty big help.

 _Okay. I'd like to grill something. There is that little grill out back. Sooo… charcoal, lighter fluid, lighter. But what do I want to cook?_

"Hey Velvet, how many people are coming?" I asked.

"Oh, just two."

"Cooking for five then. Any like … dietary restrictions or anything?"

"Oh, well I-I'm vegetarian."

"Makes sense. Let's get started then." Fruits and vegetables first.

 _Holy cow, they have pineapple? Oh heck yes,_ I grinned, chucking the spiny fruit in the cart. _Oh that'll be fantastic grilled._

I think I've said it before, but I'll say it again; I love good food. Love to eat in general too. Perhaps it was no surprise then that with a pretty savvy chef in my dad I would have learned how to cook, grill, saute, and bake a variety of wonderful foods. Now with my imagination unleashed I was harkening back to all the foods I had enjoyed and every little thing was sparking a new idea. It was similar to being a kid in a candy shop, but with real food you were going to throw on a fire.

 _Oh! Green apples! Desert right there. Just need to remember to pick up some aluminum foil, cinnamon and sugar._

 _Bell peppers yes, onions… yes, but what color? Red, yellow, white… ah screw it, I don't remember the differences. I think I'd chop up white for a garnish, and red is like a salad onion… yellow then? Maybe?_ I shrugged, and chucked it in the cart. _Okay, slow down here hoss. This is great and all, but what are you going to actually make?_

 _Fajitas!_

 _Stuffed bell pepper wrapped in bacon!_

 _Get a mango too and grill some salmon and use the fruits and veggies for a salsa!_

 _Porterhouse steak!_

Unfortunately most of those dishes were based around meat. Except for the fajitas … but then, I really didn't feel like figuring out how to make refried beans on the fly. Besides, I doubted that Coco would accept a brown sludge. I sighed internally, watching all the fantastic food drift out of my minds eye.

 _In deference to the vegetarian, I'll do skewers._

A few potatoes were added to the cart to replace the meat on those.

 _Let's see how you like this, Coco._

I finished off by grabbing some chicken, beef, vinegar, oil, butter, various spices, and a couple other things. And you know what? By some small miracle, Remnant sold wooden skewers and all the other food that I was accustomed to. Truly it was a marvel that I wasn't going to question too deeply at this point.

"That'll be sixty-eight lien," smacked the cashier, chewing her bubble gum loudly. I twitched with each movement of her mouth. Seriously, I have no idea what it was that set me off - but hearing other people chew just made me unreasonably angry.

"Cash or credit?"

"Cash," I said as smoothly as I could under the circumstances. The blonde girl took the - lien, was it? - from Velvet and made change quickly.

"Two lien is your change. Thank you for shopping with us and have a nice day," the cashier monotoned, looking as bored as if she was watching paint dry.

 _Sixty-eight bucks?_ I winced. _Sorry Mrs. Scarlatina. It's for the cause._

* * *

"Sixty-eight lien?" Coco chided, looking over what I had bought.

"Yeah," I winced. "Sorry I-"

"That's all you spent?"

"Ahh… yes?"

 _Note to self: Coco's expensive fashion tastes extend to expensive food tastes._

Good for me in one way - I hadn't spent way too much of the budget. Bad for me in that she was probably accustomed to having some quality catering or something. Her friends probably were too for these get-togethers come to think about it. No pressure.

 _So, will I rise to the challenge? Or crumble like a poorly made pastry?_

Who knows? It was probably a seventy-thirty shot for success.

 _Let's do this._

* * *

"Okay, they'll be here any minute," Coco said. "Glen, do you have anything better to wear than that frankly hideous pink outfit?" I shot the fashionista a dirty look, pointing an accusing finger.

"No, I don't as you _well_ know," I growled, to be met by laughter from Coco and even a couple giggles from Velvet. "My only consolation is that I don't have to look at it all the time."

 _Thump. Thump. Thump._

"That's probably them," Coco said excitedly, heading to the door.

 _Holy Mary Mother of God,_ I thought as the first guest entered through the door.

"Yatsuhashi!" cried Velvet, jumping in to hug the stranger.

The guy had close shaven black hair, coffee colored skin, and Asian features. That wasn't what surprised me. What was so shocking was how _huge_ the dude was. Not like the guy I had fought down in the docks, mind you. That guy was big, yes. Coco and Velvet's friend was just on an entirely different scale.

The dude was _massive_ with a capital 'what the hell'. He must have been at least seven feet tall and was built like a brick house. I wasn't particularly used to feeling small, but I felt tiny next to him.

"It's so good to see you!" Velvet gushed. _Gushed._ What a funny word to use with the normally so reserved girl. Maybe she was just reserved around me?

"Yatsuhashi, this is Glen. Glen, Yatsuhashi."

"Who is he?" came the voice of Yatsuhashi.

 _Hello, the rest of Vale just called to report a seismic event._

"I'm Glen Foray. I'm new here," I managed, allowing a half smile to slide onto my face. Yatsuhashi just tilted his head looked at me with a bit of confusion. "It's nice to meet you Yatsuhashi."

"You as well," the giant replied. "How did you come to know my teammates?"

"Ahh, well that's-"

"-probably a story best left until Fox arrives," Coco interrupted. "It's part of the reason why he's here and it's not just our team meeting."

"Boy, you sure know how to make a man feel like he's not intruding," I said only half-jokingly. "Don't worry, I know when I'm not wanted. I'll go start grilling or something." Predictably, Velvet was the first one to say something.

"Glen, you're not intru-"

"Don't worry Velvet," I grinned. "I was joking, in a self-deprecating manner." Grabbing the food and implements I would require to get going, I made my way out onto the patio.

The meat had been marinating in a bag of a oil, vinegar, and spice mixture I had prepared the night before. More recently the meat had been sliced into cubes and stuck on skewers with the pineapple, onion, and pepper. And the potato, for those that wanted it.

The grill was already hot. Earlier I had lit that too, so it could get hot without me having to stand around waiting.

Once the skewers were on the grill, I put the top down and leaned on the railing. The evening was cool and calm, with just a light breeze picking up now and again. The sun was sinking over the horizon in a massive ball of flame, desperately throwing the last remains of heat into our side of the Earth.

 _Remnant? Planet? Whatever._

I remembered nights like this when we'd be cooking or just hanging out. They didn't happen often, when they did it would be fantastic. Just chillin' with my dad…

The stitches over my heart, their grasp tenuous already, finally tore once more. It was only the thought of the people inside that kept me from breaking down outright. Tears slid down my face as sobs rose in my throat, only to be choked back down.

 _I can't. I can't I can't I can't._ My knuckles curled around the railing. _It's too painful. I can't -_

" _Glen, never say 'I can't'. You can always find a way."_

My mother's determined words hit like a double edged sword. On one hand, I recognized the importance of the words and persevering even when you thought you couldn't. My mother believed I could overcome any situation, and that confidence lifted me somewhat.

On the other hand, the loneliness and longing just grew exponentially.

 _I can't, I can't. I-_

"Hey Glen."

I didn't turn towards Coco, but instead stayed staring outwards.

"So, as you can imagine Vel was the one to notice you were looking a bit down. Of course she didn't leave. She sent me out to deal with you instead. Figures, huh?" I heard the heels clack closer across the deck floor, before a hand rested gently on my shoulder. "Anything you want to talk about?"

 _No. No there isn't. I don't-_

"I miss them," I blurted out, words beginning to flow despite my inhibitions. "If it hurt physically that would almost be better. It's an ever present ache in my soul that's just waiting to flare up. Just… I was especially thinking of my dad right now. You know he taught me how to grill and cook?" I asked.

"Yeah, he was a great cook. Don't know where he learned it, but I was only too happy to pick up those skills." I smiled a little at a memory, tasting salt on my lips. "Speaking of, do you know what happened the first time I tried to grill something? I'd done other stuff before, like in the oven and on the stove and such, but never on the grill. Well, it was some nice chunks of steak, and I was going to grill them perfectly. I knew what to look for; I'd eaten steak before and thought I could just match the coloration inside."

Chuckling slightly, I kept on with my story. "Turns out I grilled the hell out of that steak. Well, all the moisture at least because that thing ended up being as tough as leather and drier than a desert. I was really disappointed and embarrassed because I wanted to do good. My dad tried it and just said, 'Well, now at least you know to check it more frequently and take it off sooner, because the meat will keep cooking itself for a bit after it comes of the heat.' Then we just passed a bunch of sauce around to make it more bearable and ate the thing."

"Sounds like you had a great family," Coco softly spoke from behind me.

"Yeah. Yeah I did."

Throughout the whole story, I felt like a deep sea diver that was slowly decompressing. Weight was inexplicably leaving me with a warmer sensation.

"Thanks Coco."

"For what? I didn't do anything," she protested.

"That's okay. I guess I just needed someone to listen," I sighed. "And that's part of the problem too. I'm lonely because I have nobody that knows me. Nobody I can count on to love and care for me unconditionally. No one I can trust intimately."

"We could try," she offered. "I know Velvet certainly would be there for you, and I would too - abrasive though I can be sometimes. I'd say Yatsuhashi and Fox too, probably."

"Thanks for the offer, but it's not that easy. I appreciate it so much, but that trust was built up over seventeen years of self-sacrificing unconditional love from my parents. I'm just going to be lonely for a while, and that's okay. I'll need good friends to help me out though," I said, smiling at Coco to let her know that was where her offer could help me.

A silence settled over us, leaving just the faint noise of wind whipping through the various cables strung across the street and the occasional car whispering along a commuting route. It was peaceful in its own way.

"Don't take this wrong. I'm glad we had this talk, but shouldn't you be watching to make sure you don't burn our food?"

 _You can't. It'll be too painful too many memories too much-_

 _No. I can. I will. If I can't do the small things, how can I ever do something big?_

 _Do it to remember. They aren't holding you back._

"Yeah." I released my death grip on the railing and moved back over to the grill. "Yeah I should."

It was good that Coco had spoke up when she had. The skewers looked just about perfect on one side as I flipped them over to allow the other side to cook. Muffled exclamations came from the inside, before the sliding door clicked open once more.

"Coco, Fox is here!" Velvet shouted, before ducking back inside. I turned to Coco with an eyebrow raised, making eye contact with the fashionista.

"Okay, this is a change. Am I just the sole recipient of Velvet's lack of confidence, or what?" Coco laughed, shaking her head.

"No, don't worry; she's usually quieter and more reserved with even Yatsuhashi and Fox. It's just neither of us have seen them in a month or two, so we're understandably excited. Add on that you're a stranger, and a strange stranger at that - you draw the short end of the stick. I bet the only reason she interacts with you is because Ozpin ordered her too," she grinned.

"Oh that's the only reason?"

"Well, you're also not a total ass, so there's that."

I snorted and rolled my eyes. "I'm glad to hear it. Don't stroke my ego too much or my head won't fit into the fluorescent pink hat you're sure to buy me."

"Nevermind. You're totally a sarcastic ass."

"Takes one to know one," I laughed. All I earned for my trouble was a light slap to the backside of my head. Then, with an exasperated sigh, Coco turned and went to greet - Fox, was it? - and walked back inside, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

Not for too long, mind you. The skewers finished cooking rather quickly prompting me to load them up onto a plate and bring them inside.

"Dinner is served," I stated proudly as the four friends turned to face me. One of the faces that stared at me intently was new to me. New being relative, considering I had met Yatsuhashi less than half an hour before.

"You're Fox?" I asked, extending a hand. The man nodded and ignored my outstretched hand in favored of picking up a plate.

Fox was a little over six feet, with burnt orange hair that looked a little strange on top of his dark, coco colored skin.

 _Eh. Not coco, that's… Too close to Coco. Coffee colored maybe?_

Regardless, the most distinctive feature of the young man was his eyes, not the mess of ginger colored hair. His eyes were _white._ Now, I fear you misunderstand me. You're thinking that he just had a very light iris. No. His iris matched the sclera - perfectly, uniformly white. As if that wasn't freaky enough, there was no pupil either; it was perfectly white too. Just a pair of blank eyes that stared back at me.

Suddenly I began to get an inkling of what that dude from the Edgar Allen Poe story felt like.

"Don't stare, it's rude," smirked Coco as she passed by me.

"How does he see?" I hissed quietly.

"He doesn't," Coco responded. The subject of our discussion in question picked up a skewer and weaved his way around the couch to flop down with precision between Yatsuhashi and Velvet.

"He's blind?" A nod in response. "But… he just…" I gestured helplessly, hands flopping to my sides. "He doesn't seem like it."

"He's been blind since he was young, but mostly his semblance allows him to get around."

"His…semblance?"

"Yeah. I feel like it's either echolocation-esque or aura sensing, but we've never been able to get much more than a few words out of Fox."

"But… what's a semblance?" I repeated confusedly.

"Never you mind that," Coco brushed me off.

"Coco!"

"Going to eat now," she said in a singsong voice. "Hope it's not crap."

"Coco," I growled. "It will be great. Just tell me what a semblance is!"

"If it's that good, I'll tell you." Coco picked up a skewer and walked over to one of the chairs next to the already filled couch. There, once settled in, the girl proceeded to look over the grilled meal with a critical eye. Finally, reluctantly, the fashionista took a bite.

"Not bad," she muttered, the praise drawn reluctantly from her lips before a few vegetables followed the piece of chicken. "Not bad at all." Seeing my smug grin, Coco put the meal back on her plate. "Not good enough to get you a full-bore explanation into a mostly theoretical subject."

"I think it's really good," Velvet offered politely, still nibbling on some vegetables.

"I did as well, though I wish there was more," Yatsuhashi rumbled, giving a pointed glance towards Fox. All heads turned towards the offending party who somehow without me knowing had piled every single skewer on his plate, which amounted to a sum total of a lot. The blind man just grinned as Velvet began to giggle and Coco let out a snort of laughter.

"Share, Alistair. That's an order," Coco laughed, as the thief gave back all but two. There was an easy familiarity in the group, as if sharing an inside joke that they had all been party to many times over.

"I'd say that's a better reception than just 'not bad', don't you?" I asked in triumph.

"Yeah, still not giving you anything. I need something to hold over your head," Coco said, stealing away my hope that my curiosity would be sated.

"Fine! I'll just find out at the RemNet cafe!"

"And who's going to pay for it?" Coco grinned like the Cheshire cat.

"Then I'll go to the library and find the information wearing this outfit and tell everyone that you picked it out and approved."

"You don't know where the library is though," Coco countered.

 _Unfortunately for you Coco, that's not an insurmountable obstacle,_ I thought.

"Hey Velvet," I said, turning to the faunus. "Where's the library?" Velvet slowly began turning red as she attempted to splutter out an answer, eyes darting between my pleading glances and Coco's icy daggers.

"I-It's… I-It's… Uhhh… I-I forgot?" the bunny managed, succumbing to the fashionista. This time it was Coco's turn to flash me a triumphant smile - before it was cut short by Yatsuhashi.

"Coco. If you won't tell him, I will. It's not honorable to go back on your word like that."

"Oh don't you start. I didn't give him my word!" Coco protested, wagging a finger at Yatsuhashi. "I said if it was good enough, which is an entirely subjective statement. In my opinion it wasn't good enough, so I feel no obligation to let him go embarrass me." Yatsuhashi struggled with this for a moment before directing a disappointed expression towards his leader.

"You are not wrong," he grumbled. "But that is not the way it should be done."

Coco merely grinned unabashedly, raising a hand to proclaim victory, but at that moment Fox handed me a napkin with some writing on it.

 _ **The library is close. Left out the door, third right, and it will be on the right.**_

"What's that?" Coco enquired suspiciously.

"Nothing," I said hastily. The fashionista looked as if she were about to challenge me on that, but thankfully the giant intervened.

"Coco. You said earlier that there was a reason for him being here that you should wait for Alistair to explain."

"Ahh, yes," Coco sighed. "Now this is a tale worth telling."

* * *

Ozpin watched the video intently, noting every twitch and movement of Glen and his attacker.

The visit to Glen Foray's apartment had proved very informative. The boy's condition had come as a surprise to the headmaster; yellow and purple bruising covered his face, and though the extent of his injuries was covered by a frankly shocking outfit his labored movement was more revealing than any contusion.

Once back into his office he had reviewed the various feeds of CCT cameras that were around the dock area. It had taken over an hour of searching before Ozpin found the moment that he was looking for.

"He shouldn't have disengaged," Gynda critiqued over his shoulder. "He had the advantage and gave it up because he believed his opponent couldn't recover in time."

"Indeed," muttered Ozpin.

"How on Remnant did he manage to get out of that situation?" Glynda frowned. "He is fighting a White Fang who has aura without his own being unlocked."

"Like so," Ozpin answered, beginning a play-by-play of the sequence he had watched so many times. "Here. He takes several shots at his opponent's crotch, weakening him."

"Crude," commented the mage.

"Perhaps," Ozpin allowed, "but undeniably effective. Watch this; he now traps the assailants arm on one side, rendering it useless. Then he rolls the opposite direction and puts his attacker off balance and forces him to anticipate a move that is no more than a feint. Then he throws himself back the other way, and his opponent never stands a chance. Reversal complete."

"Effective," Glynda had to admit. "If a little unorthodox. That fighting style is … interesting, to say the least. I am acquainted with throws like the one he used early on, but brawling on the ground with such amount of skill is almost never seen. It's very rarely taught at a hunter level because of it's lack of effectiveness against a grimm."

"Indeed."

 _So, he has more than just a physique. Glen can defend himself as well in some capacity. It's not up to hunter standards, but is there nonetheless._ The headmaster sighed internally, not feeling the weight on his shoulders lift at all. _Do the ends justify the means?_

The headmaster considered what would happen if the boy were to fall into the wrong hands. Though Ozpin had no idea what kind of knowledge Glen possessed, the risk was too great.

 _I'm sorry Glen. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few._

"Glynda, would you be so kind as to get me another cup of coffee?" His deputy sighed, but acceded to the request. The moment the door closed behind her, Ozpin went to work, tapping out a series of commands on his scroll. Scarce moments later a red light winked into existence on a map of Vale.

 _Ping._

The elevator doors popped open, admitting Glynda with a steaming cup of brew in her hand.

"Here we …" An alert pinged up on her scroll, causing the deputy to stop in her tracks. "Ozpin, we have a power grid failure in district three."

"Do we now?"

"The section where Glen happens to be residing," Glynda frowned.

"He may soon be in trouble. Perhaps we should go and take watch over him, just in case."

It was clear from Glynda's upright posture and narrowed eyes that she suspected Ozpin of foul play but had no way to prove it. Finally she turned and stalked towards the elevator.

"Yes. I suppose we should."

* * *

I didn't know what I had expected really. Shocked cries of "No! This can't be true!" Rioting, perhaps. Maybe Fox would break his silence and deliver a profound speech. The reality was that, much like Mrs. Scarlatina, the two other males had accepted the news rather well. Inevitably there was some disbelief and questioning - verbally from Yatsuhashi and nonverbally from Fox - but they accepted the fact that I was from an entirely different reality pretty quickly.

Much quicker than anyone on Earth would have accepted a dimension jumper, that's for damn sure.

Anyway, Coco had plugged in a movie and all of us had settled down to watch on the TV I hadn't even realized was in my possession. Coco took one armchair, Fox took the other, and I was left to squeeze onto the couch where Yatsuhashi and Velvet were already seated.

The movie that started playing was some kind of alien horror flick that caused the faunus girl next to me to jump, twitch, and squeal at each and every tense moment and jumpscare.

 _Really, Coco? Play the movie about an alien that infiltrates normal society as a human and begins to destroy them from the inside out. Are you trying to make a comment on my arrival?_

Still, the movie wasn't half bad. I found myself engrossed as the hero pulled out a gunblade to begin what was surely the climactic final battle-

Suddenly the lights flickered and dimmed, before winking out of existence entirely.

"Eeep!" Velvet squeaked, grabbing onto one of my arms.

Which was great, by the way. I don't think I ever mentioned this before, but Velvet was really, really cute. Add bunny ears on top of that, and it was just _adorable._

 _Settle down Foray. Get a hold of yourself. You've known her for a week. You're no womanizer._

Besides, I could feel Yatsuhashi's eyes boring into my skull even through the darkness.

"Soo…" I asked, debating whether I should pull myself out of Velvet's grasp. On one hand: adorable! On the other hand: death! Self-preservation eventually won out over my teenage hormones. "Does this happen often?"

"Nope," came Coco's voice out of the darkness as Velvet thankfully released my arm, surprise wearing off. Blackness still enveloped me, with only the very faint light from the sliding patio doors to see outlines by. "Lights on, boys and girls."

Three lights flicked into life as three teens pulled out their scrolls and activated the screens. It wasn't like the external flashlight on an iPhone, but rather the entire screen glowed blue white like a lantern providing three hundred and sixty degrees of light. Perhaps somewhat predictably, Fox felt no need to turn a light on.

"Maybe it's just a breaker that popped," Velvet suggested timidly, eyes darting around the shadow filled room.

"I don't think so," Yatsuhashi rumbled. "I don't see any of the other buildings out the window with lights on."

"So, a power outage?" the faunus enquired.

"Maybe. Let's go check with Mrs. S just in case." Following the example of their leader, the rest of the four man team headed for the door. I tried to follow, but without a light I immediately stubbed a toe and then caught my shin on the coffee table. "Yeah, watch out for that," Coco called back over her shoulder.

"Sonofa fffffffff…" I hissed, limping after the rest of the group. "That was my bad shin."

"What a shame," laughed a voice from in front of me.

"Convince me next time Coco," I growled.

"Are you okay Glen?"

"I'll be fine Velvet."

We all made our way down the staircase, spotting a few residents of the apartment building at each landing who were checking out what was going on for themselves. Velvet's mother met us halfway up the last flight, her face illuminated a sickly white.

"Oh good," she breathed. "I was just about to come and get one of you. I know you are having your party, but would it be too much trouble to run down to the local dust shop and rent a portable generator?"

"Sure, Mrs. S," Coco said. "We'll be back before you know it. Not much we can do in the dark."

 _I can think of something,_ my brain joked.

 _Shut up, me. That's hardly appropriate._

I was glad that my brain-to-mouth filter was so good, though when it did fail it tended to be a slipup of epic proportions. But I digress.

The cooling night air was refreshing as we walked out into the darkened street.

"Oh! There you are Glen. I had difficulty seeing you in that outfit," snarked Coco as our group began trekking to the dust shop.

"Bite me," I grumbled as Velvet burst out giggling, Yatsuhashi's chuckle shook the soles of my feet, and Coco sounded as if she was about to bust her gut. Turning around, I saw Coco doubled over while Velvet tried to stifle her laughter and Fox looked around confusedly. "It's not that funny."

"No! No, it's better than that! I didn't realize it glowed in the dark!" the fashionista wheezed.

 _What?_

Sure enough, I looked down to see a faint pink glow shimmering around my clothing.

 _Great. This could hardly get any worse, could it?_

Yeah. Really smart move of myself to tempt fate right there.

A few minutes later, we were in the process of checking out a generator from one of the few still lit buildings, the dust shop presumably powered by one of its own products. An old man was operating the counter, talking with Coco in a distant wheezy voice. Velvet and Yatsuhashi were looking at a stand full of chocolate bars in the back, and Fox and I were tossing a bean bag back and forth. Funnily enough, he had less trouble catching it than I despite being blind. How on Earth - Remnant - he managed that, I didn't understand.

The bell tinkled, indicating another visitor to the shop. I ignored it in favor of continuing the little game to pass the time, only sparing a slight glance over to see who the newcomer was.

My blood ran cold and I didn't even register as the beanbag hit my chest and dropped to the floor. A cold steel barrel was pointed right at me, being held by a man wearing sunglasses and a dark suit. Just behind him were more thugs dressed identically, some with sidearms and others with what appeared to be blood red katanas.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," came a smooth voice. A man in a white coat stepped forward, taking a long contented draft of a cigar before letting the smoke seep from his mouth. "My name is Roman Torchwick, and this ... is a robbery."

 **A/N: I know, I know. I said hopefully I'd get back on a weekly schedule but I didn't. Clearly. Not only did school start, and lacrosse season started, and all that jazz, but ... well, it went from a super high over Christmas break to pretty much hitting rock bottom very quickly. It could have been worse, but now I can chalk up another near death experience to the list. But meh. It is what it is now. I'm not fishing for sympathy, I just feel bad that I wasn't able to do what I said and I just want you guys to understand. Even though I'm not a super blast-my problems-in-detail kinda guy and I'll just leave it vaguely at that. Excuses, basically, but whatever.**

 **All I can promise for now is that I'll be still trying for weekly, but bi-weekly seems more likely. No longer than two weeks at a time though, hopefully. I've had about zero time these last two weeks, so be gentle - this is going up with almost no proofreading or revisions. That said, any comments or ways I can improve are always welcome. I look forward to seeing what you guys think, and enjoy!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Well, I had this finished for Friday but the lack of computer access kept me from posting it. I'd rather be a day late than wait another week just for the sake of putting it up on a Friday - so, enjoy the belated next chapter :)**

"A beautiful night, don't you think?" the man in the white coat asked rhetorically, leaning on the clear glass display counter while the old shopkeep cowered behind it. Coco glared at the petty criminal, arms crossed defiantly. She would not be talked down to by some arrogant, stuck up thief like Roman Torchwick.

"A perfect night for hiding in the shadows like a coward," snarked Coco as jade green eyes turned to cooly meet her own. Roman Torchwick calmly took another draft of his cigar, exhaling the smoke into the gunner's face.

"Precisely my dear," the criminal retorted while Coco coughed. "Don't get me wrong, I still would have robbed the joint. It's just so much I _easier_ when our boys in blue will be running around dealing with other issues. Now, why don't you find somewhere else to be while gramps and I take care of a little business, eh?"

 _I know the media always portrays him as dangerous, but all I can see is a smug prick that is about to be taken down a notch or two by the most badass huntress-in-training there ever was._

That would be _her_ , by the way. Fashionable, intelligent, and carrying a big stick - what more could one ask for?

"Let me point you in the right direction first. If you wanted something that looks like you put effort into picking out that mottley arrangement you call an outfit, then you need a clothing store. If it's some makeup remover for the guyliner one of your many boyfriends put on you," continued Coco, gesturing to the many black suited thugs, "then you need a drugstore. Either way, whatever you're looking for isn't here."

"Catty," Torchwick responded, eyes narrowing. "But as much fun as this is, I have a timeline to meet. If one of you would take care of this so I can tend to the elderly…"

Roman motioned with a single hand to his pack of guard dogs, one of whom took it upon himself to draw a blood-red katana and point the tip in Coco's face.

"Alright kid, put your hands where I can see 'em."

 _Perfect,_ grinned Coco predatorily. The goon had no time to react before a black handbag smashed into the side of his face with all the force of a freight train. His body catapulted into an upright rack of baubles scattering keychains and postcards everywhere. The red sword slid until a certain faunus clamped a foot down on it, pulling the weapon into her own hands.

 _Hah. Vel's semblance should be a nice surprise for them._

No one on her team had their weapons with them besides herself, but it hardly mattered. Velvet could mimic and adopt any technique that the saw in conjunction with an appropriate weapon, Yatsuhashi was strong enough to throw these clowns around like they were in a cartoon, and Fox was … well, Fox. No one really knew what tricks he'd pull out next. The team leader's grin only grew as she triggered the hidden switch. Machinery ground and clacked as a familiar transformation occurred. Within seconds, Coco was holding a gold accented gatling gun that was pointed loosely in the direction of the gang. Sure it had been _hell_ to try and get the weapon to expand and collapse but the end result was oh so worth it.

"What? No smart remark?" Coco taunted as green eyes widened and several black suits took stumbling steps backwards. "I suggest you just wait here until the police arrives. Sir, would you be kind enough to go out back out of the line of fire and make that call?"

The old shopkeeper nodded and shuffled off out back. Never taking her eyes off the criminal, Coco waited until she heard the slam of the back door before relaxing slightly. "Weapons down, all of you."

There was a clatter as several dust pistols and katanas hit the floor, all the thugs raising their hands.

"Cane too," Coco smiled at the kingpin.

"I need it to help me walk," the criminal grunted. "After a run-in with a huntsman a while ago my leg's not so good for it anymore."

Coco just chuckled at the theifs weak excuse. "Right. And I'm not the leader of team CFVY. I know who you are, Torchwick. Put the cane down." The cane clattered to the floor, followed shortly by the red haired kingpin as his leg collapsed underneath him.

 _Damn, was he really not kidding?_ Coco thought in confusion, hesitating as her gun barrels twitched towards the movement. Unfortunately the hesitation was all Roman Torchwick needed. The momentum from the fall was used to carry the master criminal through a roll, one gloved hand snagging a pistol on the way. Coming up to his feet, the gun was aimed squarely at -

 _Glen. Oh shit._ How the hell had she forgotten to consider him in her plan? _I mean sure, I haven't really known him long, but shit!_

" _Pride comes before the fall, Miss Adel; or in your case, arrogance and assumption. Never take a fight for granted, and always consider your surroundings."_

It had been a lesson from Ms. Goodwitch after one of the closer training matches that Coco had fought in her first year.

 _If only I hadn't dismissed it so easily._

Despondent reflection wouldn't get Glen out of this situation. A plan and action would.

"Pick up your weapons," barked Torchwick. "Now, let's restate the situation shall we? You will drop your weapons before your fashion challenged friend here takes a bullet somewhere vital. We are going to take all the dust we please, and then you will let us leave."

The goons made a move to stoop down and collect their blades and guns but stopped as Coco and her weapon eyed the group dangerously. "He has aura; a single shot will be painful but not crippling. You're still at the disadvantage," she lied through her teeth.

"Miss, if you knew who I was then you would know I'm not a moron." Torchwick edged to the left, away from the store entrance keeping the gun trained on Glen all the while. Coco could see the terror in Glen's eyes, but the only outward appearance of fear was the slight tremor in his raised hands. "I can see three other people who could easily be your teammates. This fourth one has some leftover bruising on his face and recently healed cuts on his hands - something aura should have prevented. Besides, the most obvious indication is how he reacts." The thief twitched the gun aimed towards Glen, causing the teen to flinch visibly. "That's not the reaction of someone with a protective field. Now drop your weapon."

The tip of Coco's own gun dipped slightly as Torchwick called her bluff.

 _No. There has to be another option. There is always another opti- the old shopkeeper!_

"If you shoot him, I will shoot you," Coco growled in frustration, trying to force a standoff until the police could arrive. The thief only laughed aloud, dashing those hopes like a small boat being thrown into a rocky coast.

"Oh, that's rich. Real rich. You are going to fire _towards_ all the vials, canisters, and tubes of dust that sit behind me and risk blowing us all into oblivion. I could shoot the kid now and you wouldn't fire for fear of killing not just me, but yourself and your teammates. Speaking of that old man however, I really should be on my way. So, if you wouldn't mind…" The tone of the criminal kingpin shifted from jovial to ice cold in an instant. "Drop. The. Weapon."

The gatling gun shifted back to a handbag before being dropped on the floor with a heavy _thunk._

"Coco-" came Velvet's accented protestation.

"It's okay Vel. The dust isn't worth anyone's life." The rabbit faunus hesitated, but tossed the sword down.

"Very good," smirked the criminal. "Now, if you wouldn't mind earning your pay, collect your weapons and load up on dust." Black suits moved out to do just that, glad to be back in charge and not staring down six barrels. All Coco and team CFVY could do was watch in frustration as the goons went around their business. The display counters were shattered as dust crystals were loaded into special carrying cases. Vials of dust were quickly filled as well, and with the efficiency that comes with experience the criminals were soon done.

"Okay boys. You know where to head. Make it there quick and load up. I'll be along shortly." The bell tinkled brightly as the door opened to admit the thugs and their stolen cargo, the noise at odds with the tense scene in the shop.

A few tense minutes passed before Roman spoke again. "That should be just enough time for them. It has been a pleasure, but now I must bid you farewell - well, except for you," he said, motioning to Glen. "I want you to come here. Don't think about trying anything interesting either. However fast you think you are, I'm faster." Glen looked at Coco nervously, and she nodded.

 _Damn it all. Torchwick has us effectively checkmated and there's not anything we can do but play along._

The newcomer to Remnant took uncertain steps forward, following the gun barrel in an arc until he was a foot or two in front of Torchwick.

"Good boy. Now, follow." The criminal walked backwards to the door, covered from last ditch return fire by the following body of Glen. As Roman reached the door, he halted suddenly. "Now, because I can't have you all coming after me…"

Glen Foray seemed to realize what was about to happen before any member of team CFVY. His six foot frame lunged forward with a speed that was surprising for his size, slapping down with both hands in a wild desperation.

Unfortunately, Glen was not hunter trained. Torchwick was.

The gun was originally pointed at Glen's stomach, but was moving down and to the left when it went off, discharging into his thigh.

The loud report was followed quickly by a soft spray of red that splattered back over Torchwick's coat. "And I just got this thing dry cleaned," grumbled the criminal callously before turning and dashing off.

"Glen!" came Velvet's scream as she rushed forwards, tailed closely by Yatsuhashi and Coco.

"Oh fuck," the team leader cried, trying to process what had happened. "Yatsuhashi. Fox. After that bastard now! Me and Vel will take care of Glen."

Fox was already out the door and Yatsuhashi wasn't long in following, their aura enhanced strides taking them away with a speed no regular human could hope to sustain.

Coco got her first look at the wound, causing her to suck in a shuddering breath. She had seen the effect that dust rounds had on Grimm before. Standard dust rounds didn't have very high penetrating power, but because of the unstable nature of the material itself they tended to dig into soft targets and detonate. Glen's thigh was what had caught the blow thanks to his quick action, but it was more than enough.

The whole front of his thigh midway down had a chunk of flesh gouged out much larger than Glen's hand, which was currently pressed against the wound in a futile attempt to stop the blood that poured around his fingers. The shiny white outside of bone showed through before swiftly being buried in a torrent of crimson.

"Oh Oum…" Velvet choked out. "What do we do?" She turned to her leader, but for seemingly the first time Coco didn't have an instant answer. The gunner had done basic first aid at Beacon, yes, but it all seemed to be bouncing around just out of reach in the panic of the moment.

"Velvet. Get a rag - something - fabric." Amazingly, it was the pained voice of Glen that entered the silence. "Now!" Startled into the action, the faunus dashed off in search of a makeshift bandage. "Coco. Belt off."

"You got rid of Velvet just so we could have a moment alone? I must say, this is rather forward for the amount of time we've known each other." Coco's mouth just ran on autopilot as she undid the belt and pulled it out of the loops. Any semblance of normalcy was sought desperately by her as the gruesome scene played out in front of her. Glen let out a little huff of laughter that quickly turned into a groan.

"Don't be- silly. Tourniquet. Above wound." Glen's sentences were short and clipped. Coco hurried to wrap the belt around his upper thigh, fingers fumbling as she tightened it. "Gaah!" A grunt of pain was drawn from Glen's lips, causing the gunner to let out some slack.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"No. Needs must. Minimize blood loss. Lots of arteries and veins in area."

Coco tightened the leather strap once more, hands growing slick with blood. Glen grit his teeth, but could not stop from crying out as it was tied off. Irregular and harsh, his breath came in ragged gasps. "Get something. Prop leg up. Get wound- above heart."

Glancing around the gunner grabbed the first thing her eyes alighted on, which happened to be the stand that she had knocked a suited goon into earlier. Wire frame in hand, Coco came back to quickly slide the rack on its side under Glen's knee.

"I-I have a towel I found in the back," Velvet said as she rushed up. "I-It's dirty and has grease on it b-but it's all I could find and-"

"All good. Worry about - infection later. Blood leaving - more - important. Use to - apply pressure to - wound please." Velvet did as she was asked, attempting to staunch the flow of life from his leg. "That's a - pretty good amount of blood. You think it's - pond sized or - lake sized? I kind of - like the sound of - Lake Foray."

Coco stared at the blood pooling on the ground, growing more slowly now but still expanding. The metallic smell was overwhelming, saturating the air.

"Hey. You're going to be okay. There's help on the way," Coco encouraged, not sure what else to say. "Stay with me Glen."

A minute or two passed with Coco and Velvet talking to Glen as they tried to reassure him. Slowly, ever so slowly, Glen was fading. His skin grew paler and more sallow, throwing the light freckles on his face into stark relief. The groans and cries became fainter and less frequent.

"Glen. Glen!" Velvet yelled as his eyes fluttered shut and his body began to go limp.

"It's okay," Glen said in a soft, quiet voice. "I'm still here. Don't worry - about me Velvet."

"Don't worry? Don't worry!" Coco growled. "You're bleeding out on the floor!"

"You need to - work on - your bedside manner," Glen laughed weakly. "I'm guessing you're - jealous because - you don't have a lake - named after you."

 _How on Remnant can be be so cavalier about this? He has to be in horrible pain but he still has the strength to try and comfort Velvet and make jokes._

"Glen?" Coco got no response. "Glen. Glen!"

"Present," came the barely audible voice. "Hey - Coco."

"Yeah Glen?"

"Does this - mean - that you will - get me some new - clothes? Because the pink - and red - clash horribly."

Coco had to laugh slightly at that, despite the anxiety that was building in her gut. "Yeah. We'll go shopping and make a trip out of it. I'll pick you out the best outfits you've ever had. We'll go soon after you get a little better, okay?"

"Right." Glen's gasped.

"What kind of outfit do you think you'd like?"

No response.

"Glen. Glen!"

Still, silence reigned.

"No. No no no," panicked Coco, grasping Glen's wrist to feel for a pulse. After a few tense seconds the gunner felt a weak, fluttering pulse under her fingers. It wasn't much, but at least Glen was still in the world of the living. "Come on Glen. Foray! Foray!"

Coco's mind raced through her options.

 _The blood loss seems to be slowing down. He's not losing as much anymore, but is that because he has less left or our first aid is working? Damn it, I don't know. He's unconscious, which isn't good at all. There's nothing else we can do medically that I know of._

"Damn it, where the hell are emergency services?" Coco yelled in frustration.

 _How? How do we keep him alive? He has no aura to help stop the bleeding- that's it!_

"Velvet! You took that optional aura control class, right?"

"Y-Yeah," the faunus responded, unsure of where her leader was going. "Why?"

"Unlock his."

"His a-aura?" Velvet asked in surprise.

"No, his locker. Yes, Glen's aura!" Coco snapped back.

"B-But the risks-"

"To hell with it! I don't know how much time he's got left." The leader of team CFVY switched from shouting to a more plaintive tone. "Velvet. Please. He is slowly dying. The police will arrive soon, yes. But they won't be able to do much more than we can now, and medical services will take more time to arrive. We need to do something now."

"But I've never done it before-"

"Perfect time to learn. C'mon Vel. I'll take over applying pressure, and you do your thing, okay?" Coco shuffled over and placed her hands on the wound, not leaving Velvet more time to dither. The gunner felt her stomach turn slightly as her pants began to soak up the still cooling liquid spread all around. Velvet meanwhile knelt over Glen's torso, placing both hands on his chest above where the heart should be.

"Are you sure?" the faunus asked once more, turning back to her leader.

"Yes! Go!" Coco said forcefully, nerves and patience wearing thin.

Velvet paused, breath hitching in her chest as she tried to force away the panic and fear to focus. If she was remembering correctly, she had to be calm and intent on completing what she was about to do.

 _Breath deeply. Focus on something outside of yourself. That's what Yatsuhashi said to do when he was meditating._ The faunus' every breath caused her to tremble as she kept her arms locked to prevent collapse. _Focus on something outside myself? What does that even mean?_ Velvet just tried to concentrate on her breathing until she felt like she was ready.

Velvet had always been sensitive to her aura ever since it had been unlocked. Now she used that to focus as much as she could into her hands, trying to feel out for Glen's dormant aura. Eventually she sensed more than felt a coiled hard ball of life near where his heart beat slowly. Reaching out she saturated the area with aura, as if trying to jump start a car.

"For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee."

Under her hands Glen's heart sped up, beating strongly - and Velvet dared to hope.

Then it stopped.

"So did it -" Coco began, only to reign herself back at the expression on. Velvet's face.

"Coco. His heart stopped," said Velvet in a very small, fragile voice. "What do I do?"

"He what?" Coco asked in stunned disbelief.

"M-Miss Goodwitch said that was one of the things that i-in trying to heal a person with aura unlock that it t-took a toll on the body a-and if they weren't strong enough then it could f-fail and-"

"Try again," Coco growled, cutting off the rambling faunus.

"What?"

"Try again!"

The faunus resumed her position, chanting the phrase with less confidence. "F-For it is in p-passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of-f virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in d-distance and unbound by death, I r-release your soul, and by my shoulder, p-protect thee."

Nothing stirred.

"Coco! It didn't work! Resuscitation b-by aura has never been successful after death-"

"He's not dead. And we're not going to give up. What if - what if both of us do it?" Coco tried.

"It's never been done-"

"Don't care! Let's set the precedent." Coco hopped over to the other side of Glen, mimicking Velvets pose. _But now no one is preventing the blood from - well, his heart stopped,_ Coco thought. _This'll either work or it won't._

"You chant. Both focus. Go," the gunner said determinedly.

"For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory -"

Velvet began to be tuned out as Coco focused all her remaining energy into trying to pump aura into Glen's corpse. _Body. His body._ As Velvet began her second run through, Coco began shouting her own lines.

"Live! Live damn it!" she shouted. "I didn't go this far for you to die on me. Come on! Get up you son of a bitch!"

Suddenly, energy started building up and diffusing through Coco and Velvet's bodies."-I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee," Velvet finished. On the last word, there was a rush as both girls aura flooded through their hands with a shocking blowback. The three were the epicenter of an explosion that shattered the windows and vials, throwing shelves like an F2 tornado was passing through. Neither Velvet nor Coco concerned themselves with that; their minds weren't in the dust shop anymore.

* * *

Coco stood up in a vast expanse of white. It wasn't blinding and brilliant, but rather soft and dappled like snow. There was no horizon and nothing differentiating up from down, left from right - except a simple wooden door that you might see at the front of a house.

"What the hell?" Coco said aloud, her voice reverberating around until it finally dissipated into a muffled silence. _Shhhhh shhhhh shhhh._ Her boots shuffled over the ground with a noise akin to what a thick carpet might make.

The huntress in training reached out to touch the only thing she could see, almost flinching when her hand made contact with the door. Her hand traced down the treated wood, feeling the cool slick surface with intermingling rough spots where the lacquer had been chipped away. Trembling fingers clasped the bronzed handle and twisted. The door swung open with a creak, not exposing the white expanse on the other side like she had expected.

Instead, she looked into a tiled hallway. On the left side there was a dining room, stretching the length of the hallway separated only by two pillars. On the right farther down, a doorless opening led into another room. The end of the hall showed a living room. The house was fairly nice, with an air of grandeur that gradually sank into being cozy. Children's toys were scattered around under a bookshelf that had literature spilling off the shelves. A pile of clothing sat on one side of the couch, ready to be folded. The TV was on, showing a game of some sort while clinking and sizzling came from the door on the right.

A sudden _BOOM_ shook the household, rattling the windows and causing Coco to jump.

 _What the hell is going-_

"Woah! Did you hear that one mom?" cried an excited voice from the dining room. A young boy sat on a bench in front of a large window that overlooked the same area Coco had just stood - but the white expanse was no more. Instead there was a front yard, and a street, and rows of houses across from the one she was in right now.

"I sure did sweetie. Be safe!" A female voice called from the right, presumably where the kitchen was.

"I am mom! There's a whole window here and stuff!" the little boy sighed in exasperation. A flicker of lightning illuminated his features brighter than the yellowish interior lighting. Seconds later the report of thunder roiled through the house. "Woah," the little boy gasped in openmouthed awe. "So cool."

Moving over next to him, Coco looked out the window to see sheets of rain blowing down, pushed sideways by the wind. Thunder and lightning went off like artillery from the Great War and the little boy continued to stare faced pressed to glass.

"Glen! C'mon into the kitchen! Dinner's ready!" called the mom.

 _Wait… Glen? Surely not -_

"But moooom," young Glen complained. "I wanna watch the stoorrrmmm."

"Come on honey. We all are going to eat together as a family. Besides we're having schnitzel tonight!"

 _What on Remnant is schnitzel?_

"Ooh!" the little boy exclaimed, face switching from a pout to puppy-like excitement. He jumped up and dashed into the kitchen followed closely by the gunner.

A slim, blonde haired woman who Coco assumed to be the mom was finishing putting a few plates on the table. "Sit down Shelby," she said to a little blonde girl who was running around the island in the center of the kitchen. The girl complied, waddling speedily before climbing into a wooden chair. Glen plonked down into the one beside her, his chest barely clearing the tabletop. A blond- haired toddler giggled in a high chair.

"Momma? When is dada gonna be home?" asked the little girl innocently.

"Yeah mom, when's dad going to be here?" tagged in Glen.

"Well, dad has to drive home carefully because of the weather so he stays safe," the mother explained. "He'll be here short-"

 _Click-click creeaaak. Slam!_

"Daddy!" shrieked both kids as they tore out of their chairs back out into the hall. Glen, being older and bigger, got there before his sister Shelby and leapt into his father's waiting arms.

"Ohhh, Glen! It's so good to see you," the black haired man grinned, holding Glen off the ground and hugging him back.

"Do me! Do me daddy, do me!" cried the little girl.

"Okay, okay," their father smiled, putting Glen down. Shelby, who had stopped at the end of the hall, now took her run up and jumped into her dad's arms for him to swing her around. "Oh hoho, you're getting big there princess," he chuckled as the little girl giggled.

"Am I getting big? Am I getting big too?" clamored Glen down at his feet.

"Yes, yes you are sport," grunted Glen's dad as he set Shelby down. Coco watched the whole scene unfold, a smile creeping into her face at the clandestine family in front of her.

"Hello my dear," the father said softly as he wrapped the mother in a hug and pecked her on the cheek. "It's good to see you."

"I'm glad you made it back safe," the mother replied. "How was work?"

"It was good. Tell you what, I'll give you the details over dinner. What are we having guys?"

"Schnitzel! Schnitzel!" sang the kids as they danced around the adults.

"Schnitzel? Well we better eat it while it's still hot. Hup! Come on then!" he clapped, sending the kids scurrying back to the table. Just as the family sat down to eat, the whole scene blew away like so much sand leaving Coco in the white expanse once more.

The gunner just stood there stunned for a second, unable to process the whole sequence of events.

"Okay, what the hell is going on? Am I in Glen's mind? Am I going crazy?" she shouted out into the void, throwing her hands up. "What? No answer? Maybe I am crazy then!" Still the void sat there in silence, a heavy oppressive muffling that left Coco longing for a noise.

Then the gunner looked out around her once more, noting a jet black smudge in the distance. Her eyes followed it around, spinning in a circle to see that the black smudge formed a horizon now in the expanse of whiteness.

 _Why is that there now and it wasn't before? What is it?_

Finishing her turn, the gunner saw another door. This time it much larger and more ornate, with a twin standing right beside it. Coco stalked around the double doors seeing nothing but the wood overlaid with spiraling wrought-iron decoration. No hidden building, nothing. Just a pair of doors sitting in space. An ominous sensation built in Coco's gut and she glanced up to see the black smudge seemingly having grown a little thicker since she had last checked.

 _Oh, to hell with it,_ Coco exclaimed internally. _I'll go through the damn door._

The gunner grabbed onto the cold circular hoop of the knocker and wrenched on it, heaving the large gateway open. Once again, the scene was not simply the void.

Inside Coco looked up and around. The building had a massive ceiling, stretching far above her head supported by immense pillars lining the sides of the room. Rows of wooden benches filled the space in between, all pointed forward filled with well dressed individuals. A single aisle stretched down between the benches leading up to what must have been seventy people on risers, facing what Coco realized was an audience.

A single man stood in front of the group, arms moving in a rhythmic motion. Then, on some unseen signal, they came to life in four part harmony.

"Jubilate deo, jubilate deo…"

 _Oh. It's a choir. And what language are they singing in?_

Movement caught the gunners eye as someone crept down the aisle. It was some rabbit faunus that decided they wanted to get closer to the singers.

 _But Glen doesn't have faunus on his …_

"Velvet!" yelled Coco, cupping her hands for extra volume. Sure enough the girl jumped and spun with a squeak of surprise.

"Coco!" the faunus rushed to the back of the grandiose room, jumping into a quick hug with her leader before disengaging. "It's so good to see you! I didn't know you were here; I thought I was alone."

"I didn't know either," Coco grinned. The two friends stood and let the music wash over them, the sound beautifully amplified by the room's acoustics.

"Isn't it amazing?" Velvet spoke in a hushed tone, as if afraid of missing part of the song.

"Eh," Coco allowed, shrugging a shoulder.

"Eh?" Velvet shot her a sideways glance. "That's all you've got? It's gorgeous!"

Once more the fashionista just shrugged in response. "I mean, they can sing really well, I'll give them that. It's just not my kind of music, you know? I'd rather something with guitars, and a kicking rhythm, and more guitars. So, rock. Not this classical stuff." Velvet let out a little huff of disappointment, but waited for the song to finish.

"... Omnis terra!" With the final powerful chord, the choir drew silent and the audience burst into applause, several of them rising to their feet. Then, just as before, the scene began to dissipate like so much sand. Velvet grabbed onto Coco's arm until it was over, and once more the gunner found herself in the white void but this time with her faunus teammate.

"So…" Coco asked slightly unsteadily. "You're the expert here Vel. What's going on?"

Velvet Scarlatina just shook her head miserably. "I…I don't know."

"What could it be? Think! Anything you learned about unlocking aura."

Velvet sniffled a little, but began to recite what she could remember. "W-Well, when you unlock someone's aura you are delving into their soul and releasing a manifestation of it to guard their physical body. It usually comes with some feedback to the person who is doing the unlocking - the usual being a sense of the person's character, emotions, and the presence of aura itself. Nothing like this. This is… I don't know. And I wasn't taught anything on it either. I did tell you that no aura unlock after death had ever been successful."

Coco sat down on the ground and crossed her legs, placing her head in her hands. She wasn't chosen as team leader of CFVY for nothing. Despite that some would categorize her as an airhead, perhaps because of her obsession with fashion, the gunner possessed a certain ability for being able to consider all possible options and sorting through them. The longer she sat there and thought, the more hypotheses and theories Coco came up with, but the issue was none of them were verifiable. "Velvet. What happened during the one's that didn't work?"

"Huh?" the girl in question asked.

"The times that someone was attempted to be brought back from death through an aura unlock. What happened?"

"Well, uhh … mostly they couldn't find any aura to unlock. Even those with exceptional aura sensing abilities and superb control couldn't unlock it, and eventually anything they could sense faded away," Velvet said hesitantly.

"And nobody experienced anything like this?"

"No. No one. Well … no one I know of, anyway," Velvet clarified. "It was only a one semester class, and I don't know if I remember everything."

"It's fine," Coco sighed. _It doesn't add up. There's no precedent we are sailing in uncharted territory. But how do we get out? What do we do? What is going on?_ "So, we tried something totally new and now we know nothing."

"Not nothing," Velvet said, shifting uncomfortably.

Coco jumped to her feet and grabbed Velvet by the shoulders. "Why didn't you tell me?" she gasped.

"I-I didn't think it was important," Velvet apologized.

"It's all important! I need as much information as I can. Tell me now," Coco barked. She wasn't usually so gruff with her faunus teammate, especially given Velvet's gentle constitution. There was just a horrible, nagging sensation in Coco's gut that told her time was running out.

"W-Well, it was tried twice before, one with two people and the other with three, b-but it never worked. A-and… a-and..." Velvet took in a shuddering breath before squaring her shoulders. "All five members ended up clinically brain dead."

"What?" gasped Coco.

"Y-Yeah. No brain activity, aura reserves at zero and not regenerating. Bodies functioned but they never woke up."

 _We are… we are … existing in the place where his aura should be? Or are we just in his mind? Mind and aura?_

"Okay, but are we really in his mind? I know the first … memory … that had Glen in it, maybe." Coco said, trying to deny the situation they found themselves in.

"Mine had Glen in it too. He was snowboarding," Velvet offered.

Coco jerked her head back up, train of thought broken. "Snowboarding?"

"Y-yeah. It was like … like … he was on a really long skateboard with no wheels or anything underneath. Then he would go down a snowy hill."

Taking a second to try and process what that would look like, the gunner shook herself back to the line of questioning she had built up to a second ago.

"Okay. So he was in both of those 'memories' but where was he in the third?

"Oh! He was singing up in the choir. I was walking up to get closer to him when you popped up," Velvet responded. The anger and fear bubbled in the gunners stomach, rising like a heatwave until it just couldn't be contained anymore.

"Damn it!" yelled Coco, causing the faunus just a foot away to jump back. "Damn it all! Damn it! Why on Remnant didn't you say any of this when we were trying to bring him back?"

"I-I did, I-I tried to warn-"

"Bull! All I got was 'It's never been done'! Not, 'by the way, you're going to get us both killed'!"

"I-I tried! I wanted to say it's never been done successfully! I-I tried to tell you there are inherent risks but you d-didn't listen!" Velvet cried in a small voice as she backed away from her leader's anger.

" _Leadership is not the award that some people think it is, Miss Adel," Ozpin said. "It's not enough to simply make a plan or vision for others to follow, though that is a good start. It is even better to work with those you lead, to not put yourself above them and instead make an example for them to adhere to. You do this admirably as well, though your arrogance may sometimes best you."_

" _If I'm doing so well, then with all due respect, why did you feel the need to pull me aside and talk?" Coco asked impatiently._

" _Miss Adel. You have plenty of self confidence, which is not bad in moderation - however in excess it produces that arrogance. It is this self assuredness of victory that occasionally causes you overlook dangers, steamroll through insights of your teammates, and rush into poor decisions. You must remember that though an honor, the burden of leadership is just that: a burden. You will have to shoulder the responsibility of every member of your team, and everyone who comes under your sphere of influence. Do you understand?"_

" _Yes, Professor Ozpin."_

But she hadn't - not really. Not until this moment. Coco's legs gave out, and she dropped into a kneeling position on the soft white ground.

"Coco? Coco what is it? Coco?" came the worried voice of Velvet as the faunus knelt down beside her leader.

 _It's my fault. It's all my fault. I should have planned to keep Glen safe. I should have listened to you Velvet. Now three people, myself being one of them, might well die. It's my burden. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry..._

Let it not be said that Coco wasn't fit for the role. Ozpin had carefully considered all the members of team CFVY and had found a steeliness at the center of the gunner that would not bend until it was broken, resilient to the end. Now, at the lowest point of her life so far, that steel began to show.

Coco hauled herself back onto her feet with an almost superhuman burst of effort. "Nothing much Velvet. Just a bit pissed at myself. Moping around won't fix anything; we've got to do something. I promise you Vel, we'll get out of here alive - and save Glen to boot. C'mon."

Their hands clasped, and the gunner pulled Velvet to stand next to her. "So… What do we do now?"

The two young women turned, looking around as if the answer would be found with a neon sign pointing to it. Instead, they were greeted by an ominous sight. What was once a black smudge on the horizon had grown infinitely bigger, swirling and tumbling towards them like a hundred-foot-high sandstorm.

"Oum," breathed Coco. Both her and the faunus felt the same thing upon seeing the wall of darkness approach. There was inherent sense of something _wrong,_ something malicious, something akin to the energy of the grimm they had often fought.

"Coco… what's that?"

Coco followed the line of her teammates hand, eyes alighting on an irregularity. She had previously thought the landscape to be perfectly flat. As she took a second look however, she saw a building-like structure that was now visible against the dark backdrop.

"I don't know … let's find out," Coco said.

"W-What about the doors?" Sure enough, another portal had appeared out of nowhere, beckoning them to come experience something new. Coco hesitated, then made up her mind.

"No. I don't think there's going to be anything that'll help us through there. It's just memories that play and then fade away. That'll be our best shot there. You ready to run?"

Velvet just nodded in response. Coco channeled aura to her legs without conscious thought, the technique long since commuted to memory. Taking off at a speed no human could hope to match for longer than a hundred or so meters, the duo sped across the white surface full tilt. At such a pace it only took a few minutes to cover the intervening distance.

"Man, it's been awhile since I really got the chance to run flat out for so long," breathed Coco heavily.

"The fear helps," panted Velvet beside her.

"Now what do we have here?" asked Coco to no one in particular.

The square structure itself matched the color of the surrounding land - if you could call it that - so exactly it had been impossible to discern its position before the darkness had begun to roll in. The windows that were visible all existed on what would have been the second floor. A balcony jutted out on one side.

"So, I'm guessing they don't expect visitors," Coco muttered. "No doors at all. How ironic."

"Should we … get on the balcony and see if there's a way in there?" asked Velvet hesitantly.

"Sure," shrugged Coco. "I don't see anything else to do. Why not?"

The two kicked off the ground, legs powering them into the air. Velvet managed to clear the railing easily and alight gently. Coco didn't quite make it all the way, causing her to have to vault the railing.

"It's not fair Vel. You can go up like a rocketship and I have to make do with an eleven and a half foot vertical-"

"Glen!" the Faunus cried out, wrenching a door open in her haste to get inside. Sure enough, through the windows was the man himself still dressed in fluorescent pink.

"Glen! Glen, it's so good to see you!" the figure in front of Velvet gave no response, instead staring at a blank wall. "Glen?" The earthling suddenly laughed, but no noise came out. He turned and looked at Velvet but seemed to be talking to someone else they couldn't see, animatedly miming something before turning back to the wall.

"I don't… can he hear us? Or see us?" Velvet asked.

"I don't think so." To prove her point, Coco walked up and tried to shove Glen over. Her hands met his shoulder and stopped dead in the air - not able to move him an inch however hard she tried. "See? Can't interact with him in any way. We've got nothing to do with him. See if you can find anything around here -

Like a switch marked 'aura on, aura off'."

The room was bare, meaning it took very little time at all to search the whole area. The only thing of interest was Glen miming what seemed to be a one-sided conversation and a small circular stairwell in the center of the room. Coco and Velvet walked down the spiraling staircase, the gunner taking point.

"Dear Oum," gasped Coco. "What the hell is that?"

In the unlit darkness of the first floor, a giant beast prowled. It was a lion, composed entirely of a dark blue translucent energy, giving of just the faintest light for it to be seen by.

"It's… pure aura," murmured Velvet in disbelief. "This - this must be a physical manifestation of the soul and how it's contained."

"So, we can release it?" Coco asked.

"I don't know. I've never seen anything like this before…" Velvet said, trailing off.

 _Isn't that the understatement of the year,_ Coco thought. _Stuck in a dying body, a sandstorm of darkness descending on us, doors that lead to short snippets of memories, and a physical manifestation of aura that looks like it could eat us. What did I do to deserve this crap?_

"Well, it's stuck in this building, right? If we let it out, wouldn't that be like unlocking aura just in a more… Tangible sense?" Coco queried.

"Maybe," Velvet hesitated. "I-I don't-"

The gunner cracked her knuckles. "It's worth a shot." Coco slowly edged out onto the floor, eyes on the lion at all times. Staring her down, the lion shook its mane several times but made no move to attack. "Hey Vel, come here and watch my back, would you? It's not aggressive, but… I don't trust it completely."

Velvet nodded and vaulted to the floor, taking up a stance behind the gunner ready to fight. Reading back, Coco swung a full-bodied punch into one of the walls causing cracks to spread. _Again._ A left this time, then a right - aura preventing any damage to Coco's hands, though the impact with the solid wall still made itself known. The gunners strength was such that it only took a short while before one of her hands sunk through the wall and touched the clear air on the other side. Pulling her arm free, a sliver of light broke through the darkness and alighted on the lion that sat in the back.

"Coco!" cried Velvet, throwing the gunner off to one side before diving off to the other.

 _What the-_

Just then the lion charged passed where the gunner once stood, slamming a shoulder into the wall causing a massive crash that shook the entire structure. The small hole had been split wide open, leaving a chasm of light that now shown through. Having access to the outside seemed to excite the beast even more, driving it into a frenzy as it beat the walls into little more than a powder. Once a hole had been created that was large enough for the body, it exploded through to the outside.

Coco barely had time to process what she was seeing before the lion burst like a dust explosion, and she was catapulted into darkness.

* * *

 _Beep._

 _Beep._

 _Beep._

 _Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._

Coco slowly opened her eyes as a vaguely familiar sound filled the air. It was a shrill alarm that insisted that something was wrong, and it needed to be taken care of immediately. Groggily raising her head, Coco looked around at a devastated dust shop, traces of the unstable crystal drifting through the air like an explosive aurora.

 _Beepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeep-_

The cause of all the noise was the scrolls of both girls frantically trying to warn them that their auras were at critical levels. Reaching back, Coco pulled her scroll from the back pocket and stabbed at it several times before successfully turning it off.

 _Well damn,_ the gunner managed. _Me at thirteen percent and Velvet at three. That's a thing, apparently. What am I - oh hey, it's Glen. Glen. Glen!_

The mental fog over Coco lifted in an instant, and she pulled the arm beneath her up and checked for a pulse. There under her fingers she found it, strong and regular.

 _Pulse. Pulse - so we succeed?_

A quick glance at Glen's leg confirmed as much. Gone was the gaping tear with ragged flesh pouring blood out in a torrent. Instead the wound had shallower out significantly - not fully healed yet, but continuing to move towards normal.

 _Oh thank Oum._ Coco breathed a sigh of relief. She was okay. Velvet was still passed out, draped over Glen's chest but she would be fine. Glen was recovering and most importantly alive.

"So, what did I miss - oh," Glen said, voice much stronger than before. The boy had tried to sit up, but noticed Velvet laying on his torso and slowly slid back onto the ground. "I'm just going to stay right here."

 _Males,_ Coco signed internally, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, I started to sit up too fast and got nauseous and lightheaded. Soooo… More focused on trying not to puke or pass out," groaned Glen.

"And that's the only reason?" Coco asked, feeling tension drain from her body.

"The only reason." Glen affirmed. "I'm feeling too crap to bother and besides, she's passed out. That's just … no. Creepy. Real talk though, what happened? Velvet's unconscious and you look like you pulled two all-nighters in a row. For the guy with the massive leg wound I'd say I feel the best here."

For some odd reason, Coco found the thought particularly funny. "Of course you feel better. All you've done is lay around," she laughed.

"Well I … You just … no!"

"Having trouble with a comeback there champ?" Coco continued to chortle.

"Oh shut up. I think I deserve a pass for this one," Glen muttered in the face of the gunner's mirth. As sirens began to wail in the distance, the two teens laughed trying to release the stress of the last half hour.

Tired.

Alive.

And unaware of what they had stirred.

 **A/N: So, another chapter done. Glen's aura is now unlocked. Now, there isn't much we know about aura, and even considering that I created a pretty unique situation. I do have reasons and theory behind all the decisions, but I'm not going to info dump - not yet anyway, and probably not about this specific case. Besides a lot of it is in Glen's 'mind' - and is so influenced by how it can best process and visualize things. More on that later. It is a little hard to maintain a grasp on realism when dealing with subject matter such as this - but then again, I don't think it's as necessary as the regular 'stuff' for lack of a better word.**

 **I have to say though, I absolutely love Roman Torchwick - my favorite flamboyant criminal. I do think he's a lot colder and more dangerous that he's often given credit for. Smart, skilled, and ruthless, hidden under some eyeliner and an attitude.**

 **There was a lot of stuff that went down in this chapter. I'd love to hear any questions, comments, or other thoughts you guys have. Hope you enjoyed, and see you on the flip side!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Heyyy ... another chapter and its only a little lot late. Entirely my fault there. it's going to be a bit of a long authors note at the bottom for this one, but in the meanwhile enjoy!**

"...We'll go soon after you get a little better, okay?"

Coco was trying to keep me conscious, keep me talking, trying to keep my mind off of what had happened. Fat chance. The pain radiating through my leg was unreal, fogging up my mind. It was only bearable because I had to bear it. There was no other choice. Darkness had been clouding my vision for a while as strength literally sapped from my limbs.

Well, truth be told, there was one other choice. I could simply fall unconscious.

 _No! No, I can't! I don't know if I'd ever wake up again!_

It was a small miracle that I hadn't succumbed to the darkness earlier. Sheer willpower was the only thing keeping me awake, and even that was fading.

"Glen. Glen!"

Coco was calling again. I should respond. There was a really good reason for responding. It was to stay conscious; to stay awake. I just … I just didn't care as much as I used to. Tenuously I let myself slip away and blackness overcame me. Then, in an instant, things weren't so black anymore. In fact it was white and blindingly so. White like me. Blinding like the reflection of the sun off my torso when I remove my shirt to go swimming.

So I've been told anyway. Hey, I'm pale and freckled. It's surprising that I don't have ginger hair because I burn like a vampire. As a result … I get a very slight tan that washes off in the shower for the pain, redness, and peeling my beach ventures earn me.

Once again, I digress.

When my vision had adjusted sufficiently, my eyes began to take in the rather dull environment I found myself in. The room and surrounding area was a soft white, with only the smallest amount of shadow to allow me to distinguish the four walls around me. One wall was blank, and the other three appeared to have wall-to-wall windows built in. A door led out to a balcony on one side, and a circular ladder spiraled down into darkness.

 _Where the hell am I?_

The silence was so complete, so total, that I longed for anything to break it. "Hello?" I called out, and immediately felt foolish for doing so.

 _What is this, a movie? Just shouting 'hello' into nothingness and expecting a-_

"Hey."

I spun immediately and came face to face with- with -

"I've got to say it because one of us will - we look good. Well, except for the pink outfit," laughed the guy across from me. He had brownish-auburn hair, pale skin, freckles, hazel eyes, and was a decently built dude at about six feet. I was looking in a mirror, except my reflection felt no obligation to follow my motions or dress the same. My mouth dropped open as I tried to process what was happening.

"Catching flies there?"

"That's my line," I managed. "How are you - who are you - what? What is going on?"

"Well, I'm you. Kind of. I'm not terribly sure what's going on, but I think we're dying," shrugged my doppelganger unhelpfully.

"You're me?" I tried to clarify.

"Yeah. But not really."

"A straight answer, please? At least some more information?" I said in frustration.

My twin just laughed and shrugged once more. "Now you know what mom feels like all the time when you say 'I don't know'."

"You didn't just do that to make a point, did you?" I sighed.

"No, just a thought. It's … complicated." My doppelganger hooked both thumbs into the pockets of blue jeans, glancing away.

"So simplify it. If you can't explain it-"

"-simply you don't understand it well enough. Albert Einstein, I know. It's just that I don't know it well enough. I'll give it a shot though." He hesitated, looking at the ceiling until he had gathered his thoughts. It was incredibly strange to watch myself do things in the third person; I kept feeling as if I should mirror the moves he made. "So … I'm not real. Not really. I'm real to you now, but I only exist in your head somewhere."

"What am I, schizophrenic and just never realized it?"

"Nah. I'm exactly the same as you. I have the same personality, all that. I'm … you, but like I said I'm just created by your mind. You can interact with me, I'll interact and respond accordingly because you know how you react so that's how I'll react. This is basically just you having a conversation with yourself but a little better."

"So, I'm crazy?" I deadpanned.

"Well, you know what they say. Talking to yourself doesn't make you crazy, it's-"

"-when you get an answer back," I chuckled with him. "Maybe I am a little crazy."

"What about Remnant though? Now _that's_ pretty crazy. I'd say we're doing fine," grinned my twin, rocking from foot to foot in a habit that I realized was a constant for me. I just had a hard time staying perfectly still.

"Well, if I'm going to be crazy you need a name," I said, scrolling through a mental list.

"Glen 2.0?" he offered.

"Nah, that suggests improvement," I shot back.

My twin threw a hand up to his chest, staggering back overdramatically with a shocked expression. "That cuts real deep." It was all I could do to stop from laughing a little as I rolled my eyes.

"Oh, settle down. You'll get over it." I rubbed a hand over the scruff on my chin while I pondered what to name him. "I think you look like a David to me."

"Doesn't that mean you look like a David too?"

"Don't be silly. I look like a Glen," I scoffed. "Besides, we could always go with Glennifer."

"You know what? David's fine," conceded my twin as I chuckled. "Back to Remnant though-"

"Yeah. It's crazy. Those Grimm creatures-"

"Dude, I know," cut in David. "Those things are scary as all get out. I think you needed a change of pants the first time that you saw those videos from the headmaster."

"Oh, shut up. You wouldn't have done any better. Besides, I didn't actually piss my pants," I argued back.

"Eh. Semantics," grinned David. "Also, watch your language. My virgin ears can't take much more of that."

"Don't think I don't know sarcasm when I hear it," I chuckled, wagging a finger at him. "But admittedly, they were terrifying. I wonder if they could beat a bear or a wolf in a fight?"

"Uhh, yeah. They looked so much bigger and more vicious than their earthly counterparts," David thought out loud.

"But that's all speculative."

"Right. Speaking of animals though, how about the faunus?" he asked me.

"Yeah, I know. It's like something out of a movie. What other things does it affect do you think?" I wondered aloud.

"Well, I think it makes Velvet super cute."

Jerking my head up, I stared down my slightly more outspoken twin. "So, is this just me with no filter at all?"

"Hey, you were thinking it too," David defended himself. "Besides, this is just you and I in your head. No one else knows about it. It's a conversation with yourself."

"Yeah," I muttered, all the implications of that swirling in my head. "I guess. It just feels weird. We're chatting it up about her in here while she's out there trying to save my life. It's … not quite right. But really … why are you here? How do you exist? Why am I here? What is this place?"

"I don't know. I barely have access to more information than you."

"So hypothesize," I snapped back.

"Well, I think…" David trailed off, eyes roaming around and refusing to meet mine. "Like I said, we're in your mind. I don't know how exactly, but I think … you know I - well, we are relational people." I couldn't help but nod at that. Between the two of us there had barely been a quiet moment as we chatted to one another. "And you know you're in the process of dying. We're pretty self-aware like that. So when you slipped unconscious, I guess… I guess that you didn't want to spend your last moments alone in darkness."

 _Wow. That's really deep and kinda sad. I… this is the end, I suppose. Not like last time, conscious till the end and fighting. Just on a floor in the middle of a shop on a planet that shouldn't exist, bleeding out slowly._ I let out a low chuckle. _Then again, most people don't have a 'last time I died' story._

"I don't want to die," I whispered plaintively. "But is it bad that I don't entirely mind it though?"

My twin cocked his head and stared at me before answering delicately. "Well, that depends. I know we're about as far as you can get from suicidal. Why don't you mind it entirely?"

"I'll get to see them again. My family. That's why it's not horrible. It's just - if I die at eighty from natural causes, then I'll get to see them anyway. But I don't - there's so much I haven't done, so much I could have done. Once again, I'm dropping out of existence and leaving holes in other people's lives." My head sagged as David walked up and placed a hand on my shoulder.

"I know man. Believe me, I know." Pindrop silence surrounded us. There was absolutely no sound, and what little we might have made was muffled to an unnatural extent. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of oppressive quiet, David broke in. "You feel that, right?"

I did. There was a sense of unease in my chest that was continually growing, filling me with a nervous energy. It was an inherent wrongness, something that left shadows to dance in the corners of your vision and raised hairs on the back of your neck.

"The hell is that?" I muttered as I looked out one window.

"Huh?" my twin asked.

" _That._ The black smear on the horizon," I pointed.

David cupped his hands around his eyes as if looking through binoculars. "What? Ow! Frickin' A dude, you hit hard."

"Thank you." I accepted the compliment as David rubbed his shoulder, "Don't play with me though. We have over 20/20 vision man; I know you can see it. It's the only bit of color variation in this desolate landscape."

"Okay, fine. I can see it," my twin admitted.

"What do you think it is?" I shivered.

"Dunno. It does kinda remind me of when we we lived out in Alberta and we watched that giant storm rolling in over the foothills."

"Kinda, yeah. Remember when we were really little back in Houston and we'd watch the massive thunderstorms out of the dining room window? That was awesome." The two of us stood side by side and reminisced briefly before an idea popped into my head.

"Hey, if there's two of us I can finally sing harmony for myself!"

"Oh hell yes," David grinned. "Now you're talking. What do you want to start out with?"

"How about … Jubilate Deo?" I suggested.

"Nah. I mean, we know the bass line but that's a SATB composition bro. I don't know the tenor line and there certainly aren't any altos or sopranos hanging around."

"Yeah … guess I jumped the gun on that one a little. It's just such a fun song to sing." David nodded, but didn't disagree. Not that it was particularly surprising - he was me after all. "Okay then, how about Colder Weather?"

"Oh heck yes. I'll sing harmony."

We started out in unison through the first verse, splitting once we got into the chorus. The music washed over me and comforted me in my anxiety and fear. There was something about the tight harmonies when you locked them in that just felt so _good,_ so right, that it sent shivers down my spine and lifted my spirits. Melancholy but hopeful, the words were just what I needed.

 _When I close my eyes I see you,_

 _No matter where I am._

 _I can smell your perfume through these whisperin' pines._

 _I'm with your ghost again,_

 _It's a shame about the weather,_

 _But I know soon we'll be together,_

 _And I can't wait till then._

 _I can't wait till then..._

* * *

Coco hated hospitals. There were the typical reasons of course: the smells of disinfectant, the silent, oppressive atmosphere, and the feeling you were sitting in a giant petri dish full of disease. Far beyond that however, the outfits that the nurses and doctors wore were frankly appalling.

 _Sacks of drudgery that are all function and no form,_ Coco griped internally. _Really. If I wasn't aspiring to be a huntress I would renovate this industry. Show and go are compatible you know._

Glen had been whisked away by emergency crews, and the F and Y of CFVY had followed him to the hospital immediately. Coco stayed behind to wait for Velvet to regain consciousness before they too took off. The two girls weren't much longer in arriving, bursting through the doors and startling everyone in the waiting room.

"Yatsuhashi! Fox! How're you two doing? And Yatsuhashi … what are you doing?" asked Coco upon spotting her teammates. Fox was seated on a waiting room chair, but Yatsuhashi was sitting legs crossed on the floor.

"I already broke one chair," grumbled the giant. "I did not wish to try my luck with another."

"Heh," chuckled the gunner. "That's another location to add to the list. Anyway, how about Glen? What's his status?"

Yatsuhashi shrugged, gesturing with one massive hand. "He is in stable condition. His aura is still working on the leg wound, and likely will be for around a week is what I heard. That was just an initial assessment that we got as they wheeled him away. No one has updated us since."

"I hope he's going to be okay! I mean, I know he's going to be okay. Right? There was a lot of damage to the store but I didn't get to see what happened to him or anything because he wouldn't let me look," pouted a small girl who Coco hadn't noticed sitting on the floor by Yatsuhashi. "But I'm sure he'll be okay!"

Crossing her arms, Coco stared down the young girl. "And who might you be?"

"I'm Ruby," the red-caped girl said a little more uncertainly under the gunners gaze. "Ruby Rose. Are you their teammates! You're hunters and huntresses in training aren't you? Oh, this is so cool!" Coco gave it a second as Ruby twiddled with her thumbs before turning back to the giant.

"So Dachi, how'd she get mixed up in this?" Just as the giant opened his mouth to respond, Ruby burst back into the conversation.

"Oh! You see my sister is a huntress - well, not really, but she got accepted to Beacon! So she came here early to be ready to go to school because we don't live in Vale. We live on Patch; me, my dad, my sister, and sometimes my uncle but not very often. Not that we don't live there very often. We live there all the time but it's uncle Qrow that-"

Coco coughed, interrupting the young girl's nervous ramblings. "It's not that I don't want to learn all about your family, but how did you get involved with my two teammates?" she drawled.

"Right. Sorry, I got a little carried away there eh he he… Well, I was hanging out with my sister before she left and the new copy of Weapons Monthly came out a few days ago and I really wanted to read it. I'm a bit of a nerd when it comes to that stuff. So I went to the nearest shop and I heard a gunshot and then a bad guy ran out, followed by them," Ruby said pointing at Yatsuhashi and Fox. "I had to help because that's what the good guys do, you know? So I pulled out Crescent Rose and shouted at him to stop but he _didn't_."

"Imagine that," Coco almost laughed.

"I know right? But he shot at me so I dodged and he went up to a rooftop and so I went to the top too and so did Fox and Yashi-"

"Yatsuhashi," the giant corrected tiredly.

"Right! Yasuashi and Fox-" started Ruby enthusiastically.

"Close enough," he muttered under his breath.

"-they were up there too and now it's three against one so I thought 'there's no way he is going to escape now', but then a bullhead came out of nowhere and a bunch of meanies in suits dropped out and we had to fight them and it was crazy! We were all like _hyaaa hwaaa heeeyaaa._ " Ruby made chopping motions with her hands, imitating a bad martial arts movie as her story continued on.

"Well, let me stop you real quick," Coco interjected. "Would one of you two care to give me an abbreviated version?"

"We chased down Torchwick with her help. The suited thugs dropped off of a bullhead onto the roof. They were dealt with, but Roman was able to use the distraction to get on the airship and escape. Ruby fought well," Yatsuhashi summarized. The red cloaked girl visibly brightened under this praise.

"You did now?" asked the gunner. "What did you fight with?"

"Only the best weapon ever! Here let me show you her." With a single smooth motion the reaper spun and deployed a huge red and black sniper-scythe. The bladed weapon slid into its distinctive shape with a sinister _snick_ of machinery locking in place.

Velvet jumped back with a startled 'eep', Coco raised an eyebrow in appreciation, Yatsuhashi sighed as another chair was decimated by the blade, and Fox's expression remained unchanged as usual. The mecha shift weapon was undeniably impressive, crafted beautifully with a wicked edge. It's presence was almost as intimidating as the large hole for the .50 caliber round to pass through the end.

Unfortunately, that intimidation and the speed with which it appeared was not entirely appreciated.

"Miss Rose! If you would please put that away immediately!" A sharp voice cut through the lobby.

"Oh shit," Coco breathed. "What's Ms. G doing here?"

Glynda Goodwitch strode through the few people in the lobby, emerald eyes fixed upon the group of five. Ruby quickly complied, intimidated by the blonde deputy.

"Ruby Rose. The headmaster will speak with you shortly after he finishes conferring with the doctors and surgeons in charge of Mister Foray. Wait in the lobby and please leave your weapon right where it is," the mage reprimanded.

"Hey Ms. G-" Coco started, intending to ask after the well being of Glen. Unfortunately, she never got the chance. As soon as the gunner spoke, Glynda Goodwitch turned her gaze upon the two girls.

 _This isn't good,_ Coco thought nervously. _I don't think I've ever seen her this pissed off._

"Miss Adel. Miss Scarlatina. If you would please follow me." Velvet and Coco hurried to keep up with the deputy's brisk pace, following Glynda into an empty room. As the door thudded shut behind them, both girls flinched involuntarily.

"So," the mage began in a deceptively calm voice. "Would either of you like to tell me what happened?"

"The store was robbed. We tried to stop it, and Glen got hurt." Coco summarized briefly, not wanting to go into particulars over _how_ it all transpired.

"And how, may I ask, did Glen get hurt?" the mage followed up icily.

"Shot by Torchwick." The gunner's responses were getting shorter and shorter, and Glynda Goodwitch was not amused by Coco's attempts to give as little information as possible.

"Let us dispense with the games Miss Adel. I have viewed the CCTV footage, and you placed Glen in needless risk because of your failure to consider a variety of factors." Coco crossed her arms under her chest, trying to keep her head up.

 _I know, Ms. Goodwitch,_ Coco wanted to yell. _I realize I screwed up. I know I almost got him killed and I hate myself for it. There's no need to rub salt in the wound!_ However, there was no way that Coco felt she could say that to the deputy of Beacon without ending up in even more crap. Aside from that, there was still a hard little knot of pride inside the gunner that refused to allow her to admit her fault openly.

"You failed to have the weapons properly removed from the vicinity of the criminals. You failed to halt Torchwick before he gained an advantageous position. You failed to remove Glen from the situation and prevent this from happening. Because of this a civilian whose safety was charged to you was nearly killed." Glynda Goodwitch paused to adjust her glasses, letting the heavy statements sink in.

"And you, Miss Scarlatina. Why on earth would you attempt to jumpstart a person's aura when they were in such critical condition?" continued the mage.

"I-I just thought-" started Velvet, voice shaking.

"No, you didn't think it through entirely. I would expect you to know better, especially as you took my Aura Control class. With Glen's instruction, he saved his own life."

"He was unconscious!" interjected Coco, not content to stand by and let her and her teammate get picked apart like this.

"Of course he was unconscious," Glynda frowned. "With the significant blood loss and shock that he was undoubtedly experiencing, it is surprising that he didn't lose consciousness earlier. While it is certainly a very bad sign, it is not immediately a fatal condition especially with emergency services already en route. Instead you attempted to start his aura, stopped his heart, and by some unbelievable miracle managed to get it going once again. You two came closer to killing him than his injuries ever did."

Glynda's words hit the pair hard. Coco finally looked down and away, unable to meet her teacher's eyes. Velvet sniffled, barely able to hold back tears.

"I don't mean to be so harsh," continued the deputy more gently. "Especially after what you have been through. But I wish to make certain that these mistakes are never repeated. I have lost people that I was supposed to protect. As painful as this is now, the alternative is far worse. I will simply wrap up with several things: Miss Adel, always pay attention to your surroundings and never let your guard down. Your job is to keep others safe. Miss Scarlatina, be more assertive. Just because your leader tells you to do something doesn't mean it is always right. If you know it will cause more harm than good, talk about it with her."

"Yes Ms. Goodwitch," whispered Coco ashamedly. Velvet nodded along with the gunner, wiping tears from her eyes.

"Very well. Glen will recover. I suggest you go home and get some rest. I have other things to attend to." With those parting words, the deputy stalked out the door and disappeared.

Coco slowly moved over and drew her teammate into a hug. "Don't worry Vel. It's okay. It's okay."

"But it's not okay," the faunus cried into her teammate's shoulder. "He almost died because of us. Because of me."

"Shhhh. It's not your fault. I should have listened to you and prevented it from happening in the first place." Velvet sniffled, not entirely convinced. "C'mon girl. You did great. I couldn't have gotten through that without you. We're okay, Glen's okay, everything's going to be okay. Let's gather up the others and head home for some rest, alright?"

Velvet just nodded and allowed herself to be guided out the door and back down the hall.

 _It'll be alright,_ Coco thought to herself. _We'll get over this. After all - all's well that ends well, right? Right now we just need to get back to the apartment and - oh crap. Now we have to explain to Mrs. Scarlatina what exactly had happened._

It was going to be a long night yet.

* * *

Anesthesiologists are the sneakiest bunch of devils you will ever meet. I was told that my leg would need some surgery, which I more than could believe considering the abuse thrown at it lately. The anesthesiologist came up and injected something into a port on the IV drip, with the words - and I quote - "It's just something to help you relax." Then with a little smile, the blonde swiftly walked out of the curtained off area where I lay on a gurney.

 _I wonder what it'll be like? Will it cause me to get all loose and lose mental control?_

So I sat there patiently as a cold feeling radiated out from the back of my hand, though I didn't feel any other ill effects. Then, thirty seconds later, I was unconscious. 'Help me relax' indeed.

The first thing I recall was looking down over the two lumps in a sheet that were my legs and right into Ozpin's face as he sat hunched over by the foot of my bed.

"Headmaster Ozpin?" I slurred sleepily, feeling the aftereffects of the drugs. "What are you doing here?"

"Ahh. I'm glad to see your conscious mind has come back to you Mister Foray. I must admit, the conversation hasn't been the same," chuckled the professor.

Frowning, I tried desperately to collect my thoughts. Unfortunately the only thing that came to mind was me acting like the people I had seen after getting wisdom teeth pulled. "Why… what was I like?"

"Nothing terrible, Mister Foray," laughed Ozpin at my concern. "Though, I do recall you telling me over and over again how nice sleep was. You were quite insistent on that fact."

 _Well, if that's the worst of it… I can live with that._

"It doesn't sound to far out of the realm of possibility. In fact, I feel like I could sleep for another full day." Yawning, I stretched gingerly to the best of my ability and tried to stay attentive.

"Indeed. I won't keep you too long Glen, but there are a few things that I would like to inform you of. Do you think you're up for it?"

"Mmmm. I'll do alright. How much of it gets committed to long-term storage I don't know, but I can listen for a little while," I murmured, doing my best to force some level of attentiveness into my voice.

"Very well. I just wanted to inform you about the nature of your injuries for now. Your leg was blown open by a high-powered dust round. It destroyed a significant amount of soft tissue and fragmented part of your femur. It will be a few days before you're walking, and perhaps a bit over two weeks before you are close to one-hundred percent," the headmaster informed me.

"I may be a fast healer, but even I don't think I can recover so quickly. I give it more like two months before I'm close to fifty percent," I groaned doubtfully.

Ozpin simply laughed and shook his head. "I'm sorry. I so easily forget that you're not totally aware of everything about this world, or what has just happened to you."

My brows furrowed as I squinted at the headmaster, unsure of what he meant. Now, I was no medical expert – but with the amount of trauma I had experienced, I saw no way I'd be even out of a wheelchair and on crutches in a week or two. When I broke a metacarpal in my hand badly, it took three months before it was weight bearing again, and even now more than six months later I still found it stiffening up and easier to hurt. If that was the damage that could be wreaked by a severe break, I didn't even want to think about the amount of physical therapy that would be required to get me to walk again. I mean c'mon, the entire front of my _thigh_ was more or less removed. That's a lot of damaged and severed muscle and connective tissue, aside from a fractured bone on top of that.

"That's part of the conversation I would like to have when you're more attentive. Hardly your fault, but it is something that will be difficult to process," continued the professor.

"So business as usual then?" I said sarcastically. The headmaster just smiled in confirmation and stood up.

"I'll leave you to get some rest Glen. We'll continue this conversation when you're feeling a little better." With that Ozpin left the room, the door clicking shut behind him. I put my head back on the pillows behind me and drifted off into a medically assisted sleep.

When I finally woke fully, the room was empty. A throbbing ache echoed up through my leg, rolling waves of pain over me like a slowly advancing tide. My hand hurt too where the IV was connected like the drip was a large splinter instead of a slim, hardly noticeable needle.

 _Oh man I feel like crap,_ I sighed internally. _And hungry. Definitely hungry._

No one was there though, so instead I pulled back the thin covers and looked at my thigh for the first time since the robbery. My pink clothes were gone – thank goodness – but they had been replaced by a thin hospital gown that wasn't much better. A large gauze pad was taped over most of my thigh, which was hardly surprising. Tracing my fingers around the soft white surface, I tried to see if there was some area where I could look under it to assess the extent of my injuries visually. Besides, I really wanted to see what a chunk out of my thigh looked like.

Call me weird, but that stuff fascinated me.

"Please don't mess with the bandages," a nurse said as he entered into the room. My fingers jumped away from the bandages as if they were burned, pulling back in compliance. He bustled around, checking a few monitors before turning to me. "How are you feeling?"

"Well, not bad for what I went through I guess. I am hungry though," I said, hoping there would be some food at the end of this for me.

"Of course," grinned the nurse at me. "It has been almost two days since you were brought in as I understand it. They won't have dinner ready for a little while yet, but I can get you a drink and some snacks if you'd like."

"Yes, I'd like that a lot. Food especially please."

"No problem bud. I understand. One more thing; how does your leg feel?"

"Eh. Not particularly brilliant. It's like someone transplanted some particularly bad shin splints to my thigh."

"If you think you need it, we can start you on some painkillers," the nurse offered.

"I'll be okay. It's not the worst pain I've had to continuously deal with. Besides, I don't want to even run the risk of getting hooked on those drugs." It was something I always did. I rarely took any kind of medicine if I could at all help it. Maybe it was masochistic, maybe I just had a high pain tolerance. Shifting my position in the bed to try and get more upright, I accidentally tried to push with my injured left leg. The pain instantly shot through my system, so sharp and stabbing that it took my breath away. All I could manage was a little squeak as the agony faded back to its previous levels.

 _Ohh man. Ohhhkay then. At least we know the pain receptors are still working. That was a 9.5 out of 10 right there. Ohhh boy._

"Are you okay there bud?" the nurse asked in concern.

I waved him off, breathing heavily. "Yeah, just … going to stay still from now on I think. Maybe a little pain medication with the food please?"

He nodded in understanding and left briefly, only to return with a can of soda and several packaged granola bar and cookie options. "Are any of these-"

"All of them please," I begged. An eyebrow was raised, but nothing much more was said.

"Alright bud." Greedily I tore into the packaged goodness, enjoying the taste of the creme filled cookies first. Admittedly it may not have been the best strategy. It's like eating dessert first and then having to still eat dinner; you can do it, but dinner isn't going to be as enjoyable. At this point I was simply too hungry to care however.

 _Sweet chocolaty goodness._

The door clicked open to let the nurse exit, leaving it to swing shut with a _click-thud_. As I heard the noise, something triggered inside my head.

 _Gun. Pointed at me, moving down - the sharp report, the impact in my thigh that chopped my leg out from under me and spun me to the floor. The scent of blood so thick it was stifling-_

Then, just as quickly as it had come, the flashback departed. I was left alone, my pulse quickened, my breaths coming in short gasps.

 _I'm okay. I'm alive. I'm alive. I'm alive…_ I chanted over and over in my head, forcing myself to breath deep and calm down. _It's okay. I'm okay now._ Except it wasn't - not really. I was worn out, in pain, and scared. I was scared because I should have died for the second time in under two weeks. Scared because I was still alone and virtually helpless in this world, dependant on the kindness of strangers I barely knew.

The door opened to interrupt my reverie. I turned expecting the nurse with pain medication, only to find Ozpin standing in the entrance. "Good afternoon," the headmaster nodded to me, slipping inside and pulling the door shut. "I'm glad to see you up, Mister Foray."

"Don't tell me you've been waiting for the hours I've been napping," I smiled, glad that I had a distraction to keep me from my terrifying thoughts.

"Of course not," Ozpin smiled. "I have only been here for a bit over an hour. You weren't keeping me, don't worry. Are you well enough to learn some more about your condition?"

"Yeah," I swallowed, hand over face to hide the half chewed food while I spoke. "I'm ready."

"Are you sure?" chuckled the headmaster, waving his mug of coffee through the air. "No need for a cup to wake you up completely?"

"And a tenth of a gram of caffeine will do that? Maybe more like a tenth of a gram of cocaine," I joked to a small chuckle from the green suited professor. "I'm still dead tired, but I'm more than capable of carrying an intellectual conversation."

"Very well. As I said yesterday, the bullet detonated in your thigh causing significant soft tissue damage and fracturing the femur. You are lucky it was only a small caliber, low velocity round or it might have removed your entire leg." I winced at the thought. "Thanks to your first aid you prolonged your life, and Miss Scarlatina and Miss Adel unlocked your aura to preserve it."

"My … aura?" I asked tentatively. "I've read a little about that. Isn't - doesn't it have something to do with your … soul?"

"Your memory serves you well Mister Foray. Aura is a manifestation of your soul; it surrounds you and protects you from harm, among other things." Ozpin steepled his fingers and stared me down as if expecting a response.

"I don't feel very protected," I muttered glancing at my crippled leg.

"I wouldn't expect you to," the headmaster chuckled. "Aura has the property of seriously expediting healing. However, due to the scope of your injuries your aura doesn't have a chance to regenerate into the protective field. Instead it is completely focused on healing what is still a significant wound."

Naturally my mind was still refusing to be cooperative by jumping off on tangents.

 _So, does this mean that gingers are incapable of generating aura? Good thing I'm only half ways to being a redhead then. But crap, doesn't that mean mine is only half as strong?_

… _Settle down me. Maybe I lied and I'm not mentally awake enough._

"Okay. So, it increases the rate of regeneration. It will supposedly will create a protective barrier around me." Ozpin nodded after each one, confirming that I hadn't misheard something. "Anything else this little miracle of the soul can't do?"

"It does have many uses. Aura essentially acts as a catalyst for various processes within the body," continued the silver haired headmaster.

"Catalyst like an initiating event or more of the chemistry term?" I enquired.

"More chemically in that it speeds up the natural processes that occur in the body. We've already somewhat discussed healing, but there are many other factors. It increases reaction time, boosts endurance significantly, and enhances natural muscle strength. Not only this, but it creates a field around a person that cushions blunt force trauma and prevents injuries from sharp objects," the headmaster informed me.

Reeling from the amount of information I was trying to process with my half-functioning brain, I carefully crafted my next thought.

"So, you teach at a combat school or something like that?" I said, setting up my true question.

"Yes, I do indeed. Something like that," Ozpin replied with a sip from his coffee cup, quirking his head in curiosity.

"Well I can see how all that would perfectly compliment that. I'm assuming all these students have aura unlocked, yeah?"

"Yes they do. It is a requirement, in fact," the headmaster nodded. "It would be far too dangerous to fight the creatures of grimm without it."

"But … if it helps so much in the fight against the grimm, and it can do all these other things … why doesn't everyone have their aura unlocked?" I asked quizzically.

"If those were the only things that aura caused, then yes. It would be excellent. Unfortunately that is not the case." Ozpin sighed heavily before continuing. "I suppose you don't know much about the creatures of grimm or how aura works. In short, the grimm are attracted to negative emotions; it draws them in like a moth to a flame. As aura is your soul projected outside your body it is exposed with nowhere to hide. This makes your emotion far more readily evident to the grimm - turning a candle into a bonfire. Without combat training the average person would simply draw more danger down on themselves with the only real advantage being able to live a little longer before being executed,"

"Oh," I muttered.

A cold fear started spilling through my gut. I was now likely to bring those horrifying demons down upon myself. Red eyes bored into my mind, slinking in and out of shadows as they prepared to strike.

 _I'd be nothing more than an armored pinata,_ I thought darkly.

"Considering the circumstances we now find ourselves in that no one could have foreseen, I wish to extend an invitation to come live at my school. There you will be protected and we will be able to provide you training. Considering your propensity for finding yourself in potentially fatal situations and increasing the likeliness of such an event occur, I think-"

"Done," I interrupted. "I'll go."

"Are you quite sure Mister Foray?" the headmaster asked.

"Quite sure," I confirmed with a nod of my head, mouth set in a hard line.

I remembered the feeling of death. The darkness sweeping in like a sandstorm drug up from the pits of hell, draining life as if a plug had been pulled. Suddenly and unexpectedly I had been given what was undoubtedly my _third_ chance in an explosion of blue light, and to hell if I was going to waste it. The desire to see my family again burned as strong as ever, but I wasn't going to give up on everyone else either.

Velvet's calm expression held together by nothing more than spit and prayers as she looked down on my bleeding body. The tears of relief Coco couldn't quite hide no matter how hard she tried. I couldn't just leave people to hurt like that. Going out from old age was my goal now, and considering how dangerous this world was I was going to need all the help I could get.

After all, the Grim Reaper on my tail can only be denied for so long.

 **A/N: Okay. The reason this is late is I downloaded DCS World again. For those who don't know, DCS is a absolutely fantastic military flight sim I love to death. I love planes, I love flying planes, and I love testing my skill against other pilots. I had a heck of a lot of fun - but it's a game I can get lost in very easily. Manually starting up the F-5 module, flying extended sorties that can last for hours with refueling and rearming - so much fun, but so much time is burned.**

 **So, a week ago Friday I was on the tail of a MiG-21 getting ready to pull the trigger for a Fox-2, and I realized what I had just done. Yeah, I had spent all my time flying and no time writing. So, for you guys, I hurried to put this together in a week. Not the happiest with it if I'm honest. There's probably more explanation that could be done especially in Glen's little near-death experience. I was writing by the seat of my pants basically the whole time. But meh, here it is.**

 **Still though, it inspired me to come up with an idea for a nice little one-shot of a National Guard F-15 flight that gets drawn into RWBY's world. I'll make it work somehow :P**

 **Expect another 2 weeks? Schedule is still really busy with school and lax, as much fun as the latter is. I still need time to plan out exactly what I want to happen for the entrance into Beacon - or the one shot. Whichever takes my fancy first.**

 **Anyway, reviews and thoughts are always appreciated. If there's something that you see that I can fix or improve upon let me know! See you guys on the flip side.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hey there! Some of you will be saying, "C'mon man, it's been like six weeks!" And you'd be right. But I published that one shot 2 weeks ago and it was double the length of a regular chapter… So I'm technically still around 7,000+ every two weeks. If you want to look at it that way.**

 **Speaking of the one shot, Air Superiority, it's been mentioned that it'd be better as a full length story. Again, you'd be right. I want to do it as a story, but that would require me to have more of a plot ready to go. I may just turn it into three chapters of so on the side, remove the one shot, and put that up as a continuous story - sooner or later.**

 **Last thing, I promise. Jack of All Trades cracked 100 follows and 50 favorites… And that's crazy to me. It really is. I'd just like to thank all you guys immensely for that. All the likes and favorites and comments just keep me fired up to write.**

 **That said, let's do this!**

Looking out at Beacon, I felt a sense of awe pool in my gut. Seriously, Disney World had nothing on this place. The spires and arches rose far above the clockwork pathways and courtyards below, giving the sense of an ancient castle and modern architecture colliding. Furthermore, I was sitting in the most ridiculous flying machine I could have ever dreamed of. It was as if someone had seen a small ferry in drydock and said, "Yeah, if I just attach four spindly flappers to this son-of-a-gun I can make it fly."

There was no way it should have been airborne. None at _all._ Physics dictated that it be so. A giant barge powered by four slow moving slim wings flapping up and down would never have gotten off the ground.

Yet here I was looking out over an incredible piece of architecture perched on top of scenic cliffs. This airship was akin to the bumblebee; we don't know how it fly, it just do.

"Approaching Beacon pad. All passengers please prepare for docking." An automated voice rang out, filling the empty halls and passenger areas that contained only a few other people. It seemed the main influx of humanity had already come in. It made sense, really. After all, school had started just over two weeks ago.

It seemed that Professor Ozpin really did know what he had been talking about. Though I had been bedridden for a few days, my wound healed miraculously fast. I was already deemed healthy enough to begin physical therapy by day five, and it had just been a constant from there on out. There were plenty of hot pads and a plethora of stretches to keep the muscle as loose as possible and prevent scar tissue from restricting free movement.

For those of you who haven't had the joy of physical therapy yet, I would recommend never trying it out if you can help it. Just please, take my advice and stay injury free because it well and truly sucks. Not only is it painful, but it's extraordinarily frustrating when you struggle to do simple things that you used to perform unconsciously.

Then, just as I felt like the stretching was normal once more, the exercises started. Leg presses, leg lifts, bodyweight squats, the whole nine yards – and plenty of abdominal work for some reason. The physical therapist working with me tried to explain that the core was the foundation, especially with the major muscle damage I had received. I never really understood it, but whatever he was doing seemed to work.

The intense physical regimen and my newly unlocked aura allowed me to progress rapidly. A slight stiffness and limp was now the only sign of the life-threatening wound suffered less than two and a half weeks ago – and even that would fade within a few days if I kept up my stretching and exercises. It really was beggar's belief.

My body lean forwards towards the front viewports as the ship decelerated in preparation for landing. Slowly it was brought to a crawl, before rotating around and settling into position.

"Thank you for commuting with us. Please watch your step as you exit, and have a nice day."

I stood slowly and slung my bag over my shoulder. It was the same bag that contained all my Earthly possessions, now with some extra clothing and other trinkets added courtesy of Mrs. Scarlatina.

Making my way out the back of the ship I limped down the rear ramp that had been extended only to be greeted by a familiar waiting figure.

"Good to see you up and kicking, champ," grinned Coco. "How're you doing?"

"Pretty good, considering," I smiled back. "When Ozpin told me I'd be back up and about two weeks I thought there was no way." Swinging my left leg and then stamping it into the ground, I was still amazed how it felt as if the worst that had happened was a pulled muscle a week ago. "But here I am. It's crazy."

"Yeah. Crazy. Well, I'm here to show you around a little and then drop you off at the big man's office."

"You don't have class right now?"

"Well, yes and no," Coco said. "Yes, I have class. I was excused to bring you to the headmaster's office quickly and return to class as soon as I drop you off."

"Well, alright then. Let's get going." I hiked my bag up in preparation and set off, only to have Coco to throw out an arm to stop me.

"Woah there, Glen. Aren't you injured?"

"Well, I was, but not anymore really. I'm perfectly well enough to leg it to wherever we need to go." I replied.

"Shouldn't you take it easy though? Take plenty of breaks? Not move too quickly?" she asked, emphasizing the last sentence and sliding her aviators down her nose just far enough to wink at me.

"Uhhh… I appreciate the concern, but I'm honestly fine. I might get a little sore if we have to go too far, but I doubt it." I wasn't sure what she was insinuating, so I decided total feigned innocence was the best route to go.

"Idiot," breathed Coco under her breath. "What I _mean_ is that we're going to do this nice and slow, taking the scenic route so that I can skip class."

"I don't think… aren't you supposed to be training to be a huntress?"

"I am, yeah." Coco placed her hands on her hips, cocking her head as if daring me to continue.

"Well… it seems to me like that should take precedence," I tried reasonably.

"It's only Grimm Studies," Coco sighed exasperatedly. "It's not like I'm going to learn anything in that class. It's taught by Professor Port," she finished, as if that explained everything.

"If you say so…"

"I do say so. Now, let's start the tour. As you see behind you, there – oh, nope, never mind. I've got to wait for that now." I turned to see the airship lifting off, slowly chopping through the air as it returned to Vale.

"Wait for what?" I asked.

"What was that? Sorry, I can't hear you. The engines of that airship are far too loud," the fashionista yelled at me with hands over her ears.

"The engine is whisper silent," I groaned. I could already see how this tour was going to be shaping up. I waited patiently as the silent mechanical bird slunk slowly into the distance.

I strode up to the edge of the railing that surrounded the recently vacated landing pad and looked out over the edge. The cliff dropped away dramatically beneath me, the weathered and broken rock sloping away all the way down to a lake. Its waters were crystal clear, and even from this height I believed I could see all the way down to the various stones and plants deep below the surface. A couple trails of white foam led up to boats that were out on the waters.

Beyond that there was a slight forest barrier between the lake and where the walls of Vale rose. The various buildings formed a sort of ordered chaos, looped together by the rising arcs of various freeway overpasses. Cliffs and forest pressed up on three sides of the sprawling city, giving the impression that nature was attempting to reclaim the metropolis that had sprung up in its midst.

On the farthest side from where I stood, white capped waves rolled as far as the eye could see. The sea beat itself upon the sea walls that protected the harbor, foam spraying high into the air. The whole scene showed off a wonderfully futuristic looking city surrounded by all the rugged and beautiful nature one could hope for.

"Now that we have some peace and quiet, I'll continue. That down there is a lake, some trees, and a city." Coco drawled sarcastically.

"What a view," I said breathlessly. "Just… wow. That's gorgeous." It stirred in me the feeling that I got while backpacking; just in awe and wonder of my surroundings. I was insignificant, just a tiny part of a much bigger story, and that was intoxicating.

"Yeah. It's great. Look at it for as long as you want." Coco leaned up against the railing next to me, but chose not to look out over Vale. Instead she lifted a single hand and began to studiously examine her nails.

I sighed explosively, managing to drag myself away from the scenery in front. "You know, it's really hard to enjoy the moment when you just keep reminding me I'm enabling you to skip class."

Coco snorted in derision. "Rule follower much?"

"Uhh, yeah? Particularly when I'm new somewhere. Even once I get comfortable with the people and learn how far I can push things, I don't actively break rules. Just bend them every now and again."

"Well, we're going to have to break you of that," grinned Coco maliciously.

"Betcha won't."

"Bet I will," she shot back immediately.

"Riiiiight," I said, drawing out the word. "You're going to make me."

"I could, you know," Coco said, raising her arms into a combative stance.

"Oh no, help, the big bad huntress is going to beat me up, help me, why, I have a wife and children to support, please don't punch me… oh. I expected more." I deadpanned, gazing levelly back at my mock assailant. "I expected to be hit by a bus, not a matchbox car. It's like being assaulted by a flea."

"Did anyone tell you you're already an asshole?" grumbled Coco.

"No, stop hitting me! How did you know? My only weakness is tickling! Why- CHRIST!" Apparently, the fashionista had grown weary of my taunts and decided to slug me in the shoulder.

"Tickling, eh?" Coco asked with a self-satisfied smirk.

"Yep, it's nothing," I groaned. Rubbing my shoulder, I rolled it gingerly. "I thought aura was supposed to protect me."

"You're lucky it did. That was a pretty solid punch I threw."

"You're just mad because you can't best me in a verbal throwdown." Coco cocked her head, letting her grin grow ever wider. "That's not a challenge by the way," I quickly added.

"No, no. Of course not." Coco stepped back with a self-satisfied expression. "But I think we've burned an acceptable amount of time. C'mon champ. Let's get a move on."

"Don't remind me." I turned around and followed Coco down the long, wide walkway away from the landing pad towards what appeared to be a courtyard. There was a central water feature surrounded by archways that led to an enormous door on the far side of the circle.

 _Man. It's like someone reconstructed Stonehenge, then decided what it needed was a massive set of doors. For no reason._

We sauntered around to the wooden doors that wouldn't have looked out of place on an ancient cathedral, pausing as I sized up the twenty foot behemoths. "How do you open these?" I wondered aloud as I ran my hand over the slick wood. "They have to weigh a thousand pounds each or something. Jeez…"

"Like this," Coco said, before simply placing her hand next to mind and giving a push. The door swung open with only a sight creak and groan. "A child could do it."

"That's amazing." I stepped inside and pushed the door back and forth, impressed with how little effort it took. "It must be perfectly balanced. But how do they do that? With bank vault doors I can see it, but with a solid piece of wood, how… unless it's not completely wood, but just wood paneled over top with internals similar to a vault door. Then it could be unbalanced to lock it down if needed. That makes sense, because it's the … the … first line of defense I guess, not counting the cliffs…" My analytical mind flew through its paces as I tried to envision how it might be constructed and work.

"Really?" Coco asked from behind me. "You're in an entirely new world, with presumably an infinite number of things that are entirely new, and you are fascinated by a door."

"Mmmhmm. It's pretty sweet. I'm considering installing one in my summer home."

"Smartass," she frowned. "But in all seriousness, what about, say, aura? No huge interest in that?"

"Well of course," I replied, turning to face her. "But it's hard to do this kind of thinking with aura; as little as I know about the workings of a vault door, I know even less about aura. All I know is that it accelerates bodily processes, functions, whatever, and that it also can generate a force field around me. That's pretty much it. Don't know how it works. Don't know why it works. Just know it does these things, and even then, my knowledge of 'what' is fairly limited. It's not exactly something with a series of mechanical workings that is easily understood. In fact, as near as I can tell from talking with the trainer during my PT, it's still something of an enigma to even the brightest minds."

"Spare me the lecture next time, would you?" she responded unenthusiastically.

I just shrugged, pushing the door back shut. "Hey, you asked. I answered."

"Hey, Glen."

"Hey what?"

"You're looking good."

"Thanks, I think?" I hesitantly accepted the compliment. The sudden change in topic caught me off guard, causing me to raise an eyebrow.

"Yeah. Did you pick out those clothes yourself, or did Mrs. S help you out?"

"She definitely had everything to do with it. I didn't have any time to go out shopping while I was still hospitalized. Even after I was discharged I was around the hospital almost constantly for physical therapy." I looked down at my new outfit, which consisted simply of some black jeans and an athletic white tee. "Simple, but a heck of a lot better than that all pink crap."

"Almost anything would have been better than that," Coco cracked up. "You could have been walking around stark naked and it would have been better."

"I beg to differ," I cringed at the suggestion. "I would argue clothes are always better. Always."

"That wasn't what caught my eye though." Coco put a finger on her chin, thinking. "Oh, I know! Have you lost some weight?"

 _And there it is,_ I sighed internally.

"I said it wasn't a challenge," I groaned.

"Sounded like one to meee," came the sing-song reply.

"But to answer your question, yes. Yes I have. Twelve pounds, in fact. It's amazing what a life-threatening injury, surgery, and physical therapy can do for you," I deadpanned, sending her my most unamused look. "I really must thank you for helping me get shot. If I hadn't taken a bullet, who knows if I would have ever completely achieved this flat pack?" At those words, Coco seemed to balk, a look of something like guilt or shame flitting across her pretty features.

"Yeah, yeah. You're welcome." She turned away gruffly, refusing to meet my eyes.

 _What's up with her? That seems a little… out of character._

"Hey. You okay there?" I asked more gently, trying to meet her gaze.

"Yeah. Great." Coco turned back to me with a slightly too wide grin. "Now that we've wasted plenty of time here, let's get on with the tour."

I briefly considered whether to press the matter or not, but ultimately decided against it. "So, where are we headed next?" I enquired as I followed her down the hallway into the school.

"Nowhere in particular. You hungry? Thirsty? We could swing by the cafeteria," Coco offered.

Truth be told I was starving. _I mean I've always been ready to eat something, but recently it's just been ridiculous._

"Well… I wouldn't say no… but shouldn't we be getting to the headmaster's office?" Coco just shook her finger at me.

"I have a bit under an hour left before Port's class is over. If I walk slowly with you to the headmaster's office straight away, that's only a ten minute one way trip."

"Coco, could we just-" I tried to protest, I really did. Being late to appointments gave me anxiety ever since I had participated in the competition One-Act Play at my high school. Before that, no stress. Show up late? No problem. Then our director happened. On time was five minutes early and on time was late. And if you thought that the five-minute time limit wasn't taken literally, you were in for a rude awakening. A very rude awakening. Oh man, you would get _ripped._

So, yeah. Now I stressed out if I didn't arrive early as a rule. And although there was no specific time set for this meeting with the headmaster, I was sure he knew it didn't take an hour to make one's way from the landing pad to his office.

"When's the last time you ate?" Coco interrupted my train of thought, directing me off into another hallway. "Probably breakfast this morning with Velvet's mom?"

"Yeah," I responded hesitantly.

The young woman seemed to sense my reluctance and pounced upon it like a lioness after sickly prey. "Well, I know you must be more than a little hungry. After all, aura burns through calories like a second body and it's one thirty now."

 _Ahh. I'm an idiot._ I mentally facepalmed myself for not connecting the dots until now. _Accelerating physical processes. No doubt a heightened metabolism is one of the consequences. That, or the usage of aura literally burns calories like a muscle. Or both. No wonder I'm more hungry than usual._

"So, all things considered, I think we'll hit up the cafeteria now. Lunch service is over, but we could probably still get some of the leftovers. If not, you'll just have to settle for some of the snacks they offer. Sound good? Sound good. Let's go."

Weakly protesting, I allowed Coco to drag me off towards food. I mean, worst come to worst, it wasn't my fault. And I was hungry with a capital Q.

Some of the more astute among you will have noticed that there is indeed no Q to be found in the word 'hungry'. To that I simply reply: that's how hungry I was.

As we continued on our merry way, I tried to take note of my surroundings. Beacon Academy must have been just recently remodeled, or the place just had a fantastic design and fabulous cleaning staff right from the get-go. It reminded me of the most modern buildings I had toured when trying to decide what college I wanted to go to. However, whatever those architects and interior designers could do on Earth, Beacon could do better and classier.

A slight twinge of pain rose inside me that I quickly buried. _I'm never going to get to go to college. I'm never going to get to live anything like a normal life. I have no money, I only exist within the legal system thanks to Ozpin, and how the hell am I supposed to get a job when my thirteen years of education amounts to jack-all?_

I was surviving solely off the kindness of one old man – though I had the feeling that 'kindness' could easily be replaced with 'has an interest in you and your situation'. And if that evaporated… there was no one in this world that would support me. My first go at living by myself wouldn't be at college but homeless in an alien world.

 _God, I'm so alone._

I squelched my rising feelings and decided to strike up some conversation to avoid it. "So, what kind of classes do you have here?"

"Well, there's Grimm Studies, taught by Professor Port. Combat Class, taught by Ms. Goodwitch, who also does Aura Control. Oobleck does History and Strategy, and Professor Peach does everything else it seems like. She teaches Botany, Cooking, and First Aid." Coco looked at the ceiling, counting on her fingers. "Yep. There's a lot more, but that's about all I can think of off the top of my head."

"So, it's all very…oriented towards information you'd need to combat the Grimm?" I enquired.

"Yeah, pretty much," she affirmed.

"But do you have anything like chemistry, or physics, or calculus?"

"No," snorted Coco. "Oum no. I'm glad that I'm finally rid of that kind of bullshit. I mean, there are some higher-level classes that use math, but it's all very practical in its application. Dust classes are the closest there is to chemistry, but that's really about as far as that goes."

"Oh. Well, that's certainly different."

"Really?" Coco seemed a little surprised. "What's it like in your world?"

"Well, everyone receives a basic education that's essentially… just academic, for lack of a better word. You have your sciences like biology, physics, and chemistry. There's math like trig and calc; English, which is essentially writing and literary analysis; History and Social Studies, fine arts, foreign language… that's the kind of stuff that I learned back in my world."

"A foreign language?" Coco asked incredulously.

"Yeah. Spanish, to be specific, but I know a little French and German too."

"Speak some," she demanded.

I just shook my head. "I'm not fluent. I can introduce myself, order food, and tell you how my vacation was. That's pretty much the extent of it."

"I think you misheard. I didn't ask; I commanded. Now speak!" Coco looked at me expectantly, and I returned her gaze balefully.

"No soy perro, Coco. Me llamo Glen. Estoy alto y guapo. Como estas?"

"Which one was that?" Coco asked.

"Spanish."

"And what did you say?"

"I'm not a dog, Coco. My name is Glen. I'm tall and handsome. How are you?" I translated. At least, I'm _pretty_ sure that's what I said, bad grammar and syntax notwithstanding.

"I won't lie, that's pretty awesome," Coco grinned.

"I do try my best," I said with false modesty.

"Though, I might argue against that handsome bit." She grinned at me before delivering her final blow. "In fact, looking like a dog might fit better."

"Oh no, ouch. You've managed to puncture my enormous ego that I use to compensate for my incredibly low self-image because I place all my worth in my physical appearance. Now I'm going to slowly spiral into crippling doubt and depression because of this singular barbed comment," I dryly responded.

"You really are sarcastic, aren't you?"

"Only when I want to be. I told you there was no point to trying to beat me in a verbal fight. It just won't happen." That last comment was slid out purposefully with the intent of getting a reaction – and the gunner did not disappoint.

"Sarcasm doesn't make you the winner, Glen," Coco argued.

"And yet here I am, calm as a cucumber, while you're getting all uppity. I'd call that a verbal victory for me." I raised my left hand and high-fived myself. "Nice!"

"Did you just celebrate with yourself?" Coco asked, taken aback.

"Yeah. You would too, if you had anything to celebrate about." Once again, I high-fived myself. "Nice!"

"Dick," Coco frowned, hitting me in the shoulder once again.

"See? That's what I'm talking about," I wheezed. "Resorting to physical violence because you can't win the verbal spar."

"I'm sorry, do you want me to take you to the cafeteria? Because I can just as easily not get you something to eat," Coco threatened, arms crossed under her breasts. I would have argued, but my stomach told me I was not in a position to push the envelope any farther.

"My sincerest apologies, ma'am. It appears I momentarily forgot my place. Consider this battle conceded to your most excellent use of holding my stomach hostage. Please, lead onward." I bowed with an over exaggerated flourish.

"I suppose I can show you the way," Coco teased as she set off once more. "But if you want to guarantee I take you to the right place, speak some more foreign languages."

I sighed. It didn't matter how rusty I was; it wasn't as if Coco would know what I should have properly said. "Bonjour. Je'mapelle Glen. Como ca va? J'emme… pommes."

"And what did that mean?"

"Hi, my name's Glen. How are you? I like apples."

"Well, at least I know what to get you when we arrive at the cafeteria," Coco laughed.

"Okay." I held up a hand in protest. "Not that apples are bad or anything. I actually quite enjoy them. What I wanted to say was cookies, but I don't know that one in French. All that came to mind was the Spanish 'galletas' so I had to switch words."

"Huh. And the last language?"

"Uhh… yeah." I hesitated, trying to come up with all the German words I knew. "Uhh.. eins, zwei, drei, brot, brille, nein, holzlöffel, blitzkrieg."

"What did that mean?" asked Coco once more inquisitively.

"One, two, three, bread, glasses, no, wooden ladle, lightning war. My German is really the most limited of the three," I laughed. That was surprising, really. My grandparents and mom spoke fluent German, and yet I had only managed to pick up a few words here and there. Meanwhile, the American and Canadian schooling systems had respectively managed to make me not quite conversationally fluent in French and Spanish. Go figure.

"Clearly," the fashionista laughed along with me. "Perfect timing though. We have arrived at…" It was Coco's confident voice dying away that got me to look up and take a more immediate interest in my surroundings.

We had made our way into a grand room, with tall windows spaced closely together from wall to wall. Rows upon rows of wooden tables sat in perfect order, ready for their next use. _What on Earth- Remnant – could have caused… oh._

There, in the center of the eating hall with arms crossed, stood an imposing figure. She had blonde hair pulled up into a severe bun, and green eyes that stared sternly over half-moon glasses. "Miss Adel. Mister Foray." Her sharp voice cracked across the intervening space, freezing the both of us into place. A black cape with purple lining streamed out behind her as the swiftly crossed to us.

Up close, the woman wasn't any less intimidating. She had to be at least five inches taller than I, and made use of every bit of height. The mere presence of her demanded respect and subservience.

"Oh, hey Ms. G!" Coco tried brightly, somehow managing to sound confident and casual in the face of such a cold demeanor.

"Miss Goodwitch or Professor Goodwitch are perfectly acceptable forms of address, Miss Adel. Please do … try … and use one of the two next time, are we clear?" Coco nodded, easily, as if having received such a telling off many times before. "Now, this is not the first time you have tried to opt out of Professor Port's class. May I remind you, especially considering our recent conversations, how knowing your enemy and paying attention to even mundane details can be the difference between life and death?"

At this Coco seemed to wilt, her bravado flying out the window. "Yes, Professor Goodwitch."

The uncomfortable silence dragged on for a brief moment until Ms. Goodwitch saw fit to end it. "Very well. Return to class then, and I hope to never have this conversation again. You are dismissed." Coco nodded again, turning to look at me briefly before ducking away and walking off towards her class.

Throughout the whole exchange, I simply stood in place awkwardly as Coco was told off. As the gunner left, Glynda Goodwitch finally addressed me individually. "Glen Foray. I am Professor Goodwitch, the Deputy of Beacon Academy. Please follow me to Headmaster Ozpin's office."

"Yes'm," I managed as I now began to trail her out of the cafeteria and down a new hallway. My goodness but that woman was scary. I didn't dare say anything as her heeled boots clacked down the hallways. Within just a few minutes we stood in silence in an elevator, the only sound the soft ping as a different floor was passed.

After what seemed like an eternity, I felt the familiar momentary weightlessness as the elevator slowed and halted at the top floor. The doors opened, and I was led out like a prisoner in invisible shackles.

"Ozpin. I have Glen Foray for you to meet with, as requested."

"Thank you Glynda," came Ozpin's calm and soothing voice. "I appreciate the effort you had to go through to bring him here in a timely manner." Glynda nodded and then took her leave as I felt heat rise slowly into my neck and cheeks. "Come, have a seat Glen. How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling really good, considering where I was not too long ago." A small chuckle escaped my lips as I sat across from the headmaster. "I must admit, I really didn't think I could be anywhere near this healed when you first talked to me in the hospital."

"Yes, aura is truly incredible," Ozpin smiled back. "I'm glad to hear you're doing well."

A thought occurred to me, spurred on my Coco's questioning earlier. "Professor Ozpin, how does aura work? And what are the limits of its capabilities?"

"All in good time," Ozpin said, deflecting around the question admirably. "That would perhaps be best served with a demonstration to supplement the lengthy lecture that would surely follow. In the meantime-" The headmaster opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a checkered board and wooden box. "How about we play a game of chess?"

He opened the wooden box and began setting up the chessboard, black and white pieces flowing effortlessly into their correct positions perpendicular from where we sat. "You know how to play, I presume?"

"Yes, I do."

"Very good."

 _What on Remnant is this about?_ I wondered internally as the headmaster finished preparing the game. _I have no idea what I expected when I walked in, but I would never have guessed a chess game._ Then again, I couldn't totally be surprised either. The headmaster was such an enigma I wouldn't have placed this as out of character for him.

"Now, Mister Foray; will you have the white pieces, or black?"

"Black," I answered immediately.

Ozpin spun the chess set and our match began.

In all honesty, I doubted I had a prayer of winning. My best experience with chess strategy was a little summer camp I did probably back in fourth grade. I knew no defense strategies, no attack strategies, nothing. In a friendly game I relied purely on studying the board and trying to play a few moves ahead in my mind. An eminently flawed strategy against someone who knew what they were doing - not to mention more time consuming - but it was all I had.

After just a few moves, Ozpin began to ask me questions. "So Glen, you have received a more, shall I say, traditional education? Maths, sciences, linguistics, history?"

"Yes, I have," I replied. Ozpin deftly moved a piece immediately after I took my turn, leaving me to ponderously consider my next move.

"I presume that they did not teach you combatives however?" Ozpin enquired as I moved a pawn to protect my knight from the looming threat of Ozpin's bishop.

"Yes and no."

"Yes and no," Ozpin said amusedly. His bishop flicked out in the opposite direction, surgically removing a different pawn from the board.

"Well, I did participate in my school wrestling team for a while. That and engaging in contact sports like lacrosse, rugby, and football, I'd say I got _some_ form of combative training out of school. They weren't mandatory though; they were all extracurricular." Ozpin nodded as I attempted to figure out what he could be aiming towards in placing his bishop in such a seemingly innocuous location.

"Indeed. Then where did the bulk of your combat training come from?" Ozpin watched as I castled my king and rook in anticipation of his next move. "Well played, Mister Foray."

"Well, I took classes outside of school for two different martial arts; karate and boxing. I got decent at both before quitting just due to a lack of time. However, I – ahh, crud." My sudden lapse in speech was due to Ozpin sliding his rook to take a pawn, boxing my king in the corner between that and his bishop from earlier. "Good play. I didn't see that coming."

"A good match, Glen. But I believe this is checkmate." A pleased smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, though not an unkind one.

"A good match, my foot. You destroyed me in a humiliatingly short amount of time, and I feel like you were holding back," I chuckled.

"Perhaps. Do continue your story though, Mister Foray." Ozpin motioned me to go on as he reset the chessboard.

"Well," I sighed. "I had two friends who did get black belts in judo and jiu jitsu respectively. I spent a lot of time with them, and they taught me some of what they know. Basically I ended up being mediocre at five different martial disciplines, but it's served me decently well."

"Indeed," Ozpin said, taking a deep sip from his ever-present coffee mug. "I am familiar with boxing and wrestling, but the others are foreign to me. Would you describe them briefly for me?"

"Sure. Karate is a martial art based on striking and blocking with the hands and feet. Judo and jiu jitsu are both grappling martial arts, but judo focuses on throws and jiu jitsu focuses on the ground game with bars and submissions," I explained.

Ozpin simply nodded, as if filing the information away for future reference. "One more game, if you would humor me?"

"I don't see that the outcome will change significantly, but sure. I'm up for the challenge."

"Very good. Will you have white, or black?" Ozpin enquired again.

"I suppose…white, please." Once again the chessboard was rotated, this time the white players on my side.

"Before you begin, I must introduce another twist." The headmaster rummaged around in the same desk drawer briefly. "Are you familiar with this?"

Set before us was what looked like two alarm clocks that had been mashed together. There were two timers, both with five minutes set on each. There was a button over each timer like a snooze button ready to be depressed.

"I don't think so."

"Very well. Each of us has five minutes total to attempt to win the game. One can win by checkmate or by having his opponent run out of time first," Ozpin explained patiently.

 _A speed round then. It's a risk-reward; take time to plan well, and run out of time. Go too fast, and make a mistake._

The stakes were upped, and the challenge was greater. I knew Ozpin would move quickly, so I had to move quicker and run him out of time. _But he took me out in under five minutes last time and that was with careful planning._ Oh, how I wished I was playing a card game like euchre or poker. Something involving luck and bluffing as well as skill, not to mention a game I was familiar with. Chess on the other hand had a move and countermove that could be memorized if one took the time. Presuming Ozpin knew all the ins and outs that I didn't, there was realistically no way I would get him in checkmate.

 _Speed it is, then. And hopefully luck is on my side._

"I think I understand."

Ozpin smiled and motioned for me to begin. "Very well. Don't forget to press your button at the end of your turn."

"I won't," I muttered, trying to plan ahead as far as I could while I still had the opportunity. _No use putting it off._ I moved a pawn and started the clock. Scarce had two seconds gone by before the roles were reversed and my time started winding down.

"You speak multiple languages Glen? I am quite impressed." I jerked up in surprise, precious seconds winding off the clock as I freed my bishop and slammed the button home.

 _How does he know that? I only just mentioned that to Coco moments ago._

I had precious little time to reflect on that as it was once again my turn. Quickly advancing a pawn a single square, I hit the timer once more. "Well, I wouldn't say… speak multiple. More… like I know … a little bit of several."

"Still, there are precious few individuals that can claim to know of a second or third language in this world, and those persons in question are usually scholars." Whereas I needed to take breaks in the midst of my speaking to focus, Ozpin seemed to never even consider his next move.

"Isn't there… multiple languages?" I analyzed the board as best as I could, mind flying through possibilities as I shifted pieces as quickly as possible.

"There was indeed, once upon a time. Unfortunately, not all things can last. There was a great war over a hundred years ago; one that threatened to wipe out all of humanity. There were many things at the heart of this conflict: land disputes, faunus rights – and individuality. When the war ended, there was an enormous - check - push for unity between the kingdoms to ensure such a war would never happen again. Ironically enough, while art and color flourished, another form of expression died. Almost every inhabitant of the World of Remnant now speaks the same language. Other indigenous languages have almost completely died out, kept alive - check - only in books."

"Huh. That's … interesting." I spoke as if I had the worst case of ADHD ever diagnosed, trailing off every second or third word as I frantically tried to keep up.

"Indeed. Well, I do believe that is checkmate." Ozpin leaned back contentedly and took another draft of his aromatic beverage. I simply looked to confirm what he said was true; knowing his skill and mine, it was no great surprise when he said it.

"Only a minute and a half, less, off each clock. That's under three minutes," I lamented. My hopes of making it even somewhat of a close game were dashed like a plate at a Greek restaurant.

"You did well, Glen. Thank you for indulging me." Carefully packing away the set, Ozpin put everything back in its place. "I did not simply want to meet with you for the purpose of playing a chess match, however."

"What is it you wanted to talk to me about?"

"I wished to talk to you about your future, both at this academy and the rest of your life - though the two are not mutually exclusive. You have been dropped into a rather unforgiving world, Mister Foray. Your situation is… unique, even among the few other cases we have had." The headmaster took a long draft of coffee, scrutinizing me intensely over his circular spectacles. "Being unique is something that is highly celebrated in this world."

"Like color, expression, and art being one of the reasons at the center of that massive war," I nodded in understanding.

"Indeed, Glen. Yet in this world we run into another paradox. For as much as being unique is valued, it's dangerous. In this world, being unique gets you killed." At these words, the ice that sat constantly somewhere in the back of my neck spread a little farther. "Being unique often means power, in one form or another. Those that seek to gain power exploit those that have it. If others were to know that you were from another world, you would be a sought after commodity."

"I don't have any powers though." My forehead creased as I tried to understand. "I know what I can do; I'm not unrealistic. I'm a pretty good fighter. But I saw what Velvet and Coco can do, and even in that brief period of time it's been made pretty clear that I'd last all of two seconds against them."

"Your power to others lies not in your physical abilities, Glen. Your mind and knowledge would be sought."

"I thought of that, but all I have what probably equates to a civilian education in this world. You have doctors, scientists, engineers with far more schooling than I. Why would I be so valuable?" I protested.

Ozpin nodded slowly, holding his mug in front of him with both hands. "You are correct, but only partially so. While our worlds do appear to be virtually parallel in many regards, there are areas where they are not. No doubt some technology, strategies, even ideas extrapolated from history that you know are vastly different from the direction our world has gone. This is the knowledge that is sought by all manner of interested parties. Not all of them are bad," Ozpin clarified. "But once one group knows, the other will find out soon enough. And when an unsavory group finds out, your life will become far more dangerous than it already is."

"More dangerous than it already is?" I said in mock incredulity. "Demon animals and murdering criminals and a gang called the White Fang… how could it get any worse?"

Ozpin steepled his fingers and leaned in over the desk. "Mister Foray, it is hardly a laughing matter. As powerful and influential as I am, there are forces that even I might not be able to protect you from. If they were to find you, it is possible they could use you on their paths to destroy entire civilizations."

"Sorry," I muttered abashedly.

"Nothing to apologize for, Glen. You weren't to know. You haven't told anyone of your… situation, am I correct in assuming?"

"Well, yeah, not beside team coffee and Mrs. Scarlatina. I gathered I wasn't really supposed to talk about it." I shrugged nonchalantly. "Why would I anyway? I don't trust anyone except those that you entrusted the information to."

"Excellent. Though I intend to keep you as safe and as hidden as possible, there will likely be a day when you need to defend yourself against some evil, be it man or Grimm. I suggest that while you spend time at this school you learn not only more of this world, but of combat."

"You want me to learn to fight? I asked, a small smile of relief forming. "I'd be more than glad to learn. Would I attend the classes with the rest of the students?"

"I'm afraid not," Ozpin said in a conciliatory tone. "I was thinking more along the lines of private lessons."

I hastily moved to reassure him. "No no, I didn't think I really wanted to be involved in the classes. Everyone here has probably been practicing for years and I'd rather not get crushed under coursework I don't know and fight someone who is way above my level. Private lessons sound way more my speed for now."

"Very good," smiled Ozpin in understanding. "I am encouraged to hear it. We're almost done here; just a few more items. First, I would like you to have this." From within his desk, Ozpin pulled out a scroll.

 _Holy crap, I'm getting a scroll? This is awesome!_ I cheered internally. "Thank you," I said externally, taking the slim device and slipping it into my pocket.

"Don't lose this device; it will do everything for you while you are staying at this academy. It will allow traditional features like talk and text, but will also do things such as open your room and locker," Ozpin informed me.

"Can I get a replacement if needed?" It was an important question for me - I was notorious for losing things. There's probably someone out there who believes it's impossible to lose a phone because it's glued to their hands, but I'm not like that. Not that I want to lose my phone, per se - but it has happened.

The headmaster just chuckled, leaning back in his ornate chair. "We'll talk about that if it comes to it. In the meantime, try not to misplace it. I'll communicate with you later about the training, but for now I would simply like to allow you the time to get used to the campus. Thank you for indulging me once again."

"No problem sir," I grinned. "It was fun. Perhaps I should brush up on my chess and give you a run for your money next time."

"Perhaps," Ozpin agreed. "If you head back down the elevator to the ground floor you should find Miss. Goodwitch waiting for you.

"Thank you." I stood, gathered my bag, and headed to the elevators. "Have a good day Professor Ozpin!"

"And you as well, Glen." As I looked back while the elevator doors slid shut, I could see Ozpin staring after me with an intense scrutiny that made me uncomfortable, persisting until the doors slid shut.

 _Am I really that interesting? My mind turned into some sort of unconventional weapon?_ I wasn't entirely sold on that premise yet, but I sure didn't want to push the bounds and get entangled with the wrong people one way or the other. Now, thanks to Ozpin, I had the opportunity to train, to get stronger, and to defend myself.

I wasn't ready to leave another world quite so soon, and now I'd do my best to make sure no one could force that upon me.

 **A/N: And so, we arrive at Beacon. Not a super exciting necessarily, but important to getting me settled into the school and setting up the Beacon arc. Now that I'm in, we can begin with all the good stuff.**

 **Spars, meeting RWBY and JNPR, getting a weapon, and thickening that plot. Thicken it. Thicken it like… What do you thicken? Someone feed me a simile.**

 **Anyway, all thoughts, comments, criticisms and concerns are welcome. I invite them with open arms. See you on the flip side!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: One quick thing before we begin: I do respond to all the reviews I can with a PM. I am however aware that not everyone pays attention to that and may not be aware. I am considering answering reviews in the A/N's as opposed through PM. It's not as if I receive a ton. Just wondering if people would prefer that format more. There are downsides and upsides to either one, so I'll roll with what the people want with this one. Tell me in a review or PM what you'd rather see. Because I can't be bothered to set up a poll.**

 **But enough of that! Let's get on with this tale. Be gentle with grammar and syntax errors - I'm rushing to put this up from my hotel room before I go to sing for the state choir competition, so it hasn't gotten a final once over. Enjoy!**

"This will be your room for the foreseeable future Mister Foray," Glynda Goodwitch intoned from behind me. "All the furniture has been provided. Please, try and keep it in one piece."

 _Oh ye of little faith,_ I thought, though I made sure my mouth stayed firmly shut. "Thank you, Miss Goodwitch," I replied instead.

The room was fairly nice, all things considered. The main room was dominated by four beds lined up against the far wall, lit by the central window behind them. A door on the left led to what I could see was the bathroom, and on the right side were two closet doors. Several shelves and drawers stood despondently empty in the remaining space, leaving little room for anything else to be crammed in.

"Headmaster Ozpin requests that you check your scroll frequently until he can establish a schedule for you. Dinner service today will run from six PM until eight PM in the cafeteria." I tried to ask how to find the cafeteria or about what other times things were going on, but Miss Goodwitch forestalled that line of questioning. "There should be a comprehensive schedule on your scroll, as well as a campus map. I suggest you familiarize yourself with them as soon as possible."

"Yes ma'am," I said, turning to face the imposing figure at my back.

"Very well, Mister Foray. I hope to see you soon. Enjoy your new accommodations."

"Thank you ma'am." I breathed a sigh of relief as the deputy stalked off, already leafing through a folder of papers that had been tucked under her arm. Now, I don't have a problem with authority figures. All I'm saying is that I got the feeling putting a single toe out of line would earn Ms. Goodwitch's disapproval - and given her stern countenance and intimidating demeanour, I was keen stay in her good books.

Closing the door softly, I surveyed the room once more. The interior was rather cramped with so much furniture in one room. In some ways it reminded of college dorms; space was at a premium. However, this room was set up for four people. I was only one.

 _If I just do some rearranging it would feel far less cramped - not to mention getting rid of some of the furniture. I mean, I only need one bed._

First things first. How was I to get rid of the beds? I went over and inspected the wooden frames. It didn't appear that they were screwed together; nearest I could tell, they were just held together with wooden dowels.

I lifted the mattress off the first bed and propped it against the wall, returning to stack the slats next to it. Wrapping one hand around one side of the frame and the other around the foot, I tried to yank them both apart.

Nothing.

I yanked again even harder, only to get similar results - this time with significantly more creaking and groaning. _Well, crap. They probably used some wood glue or some such to stick it together._

 _Well, of course they did you moron, otherwise it would slowly pull apart. They're dowels, not screws._

" _Please, try and keep it in one piece."_ Ms. Goodwitch glared in my mind's eye.

 _Yeah, definitely not risking that._

Resignedly, I gave up on all the work I had attempted and replaced the slats and mattress, just piling the blankets and sheets back on top. _I'll have to ask if I could have them taken away_ , I supposed.

Meanwhile, I decided to focus on what I could do. Opening one of the two closets, I was pleasantly surprised. They were decently sized walkins which was far more than I expected. Just above my head a shelf was mounted into the wall, ringing around the three walls while a soft light illuminated the interior. It wasn't massive, but it was easily a ten-by ten space.

 _Oh yeah, this'll fit a couple of those shelving units no problem,_ I thought. _Heck, it would even probably fit one of those beds with room leftover._

That simple observance sparked a thought in my head that grew until I had to put it into action. I walked out of the closet and, with a little bit of effort, flipped one of the beds on its end. Of course, in my excitement to enact my idea I forgot to take the mattress and slats out. The violent motion sent the mattress slowly crashing down like a tree; a muffled thump marked the halt of its descent, punctuated by the clattering of slats.

 _Whoops,_ I thought carelessly, clearing the slats off the footboard as I picked up the frame and maneuvered it over to the closet door. With a little bit of creative thinking and a lot of effort, I managed to wiggle the bed into the walk-in closet. I ran back all fifteen feet or so to gather the slats and mattress, slamming my shoulder on the door frame in my excitement. I reassembled the bed, then stood back to admire my handiwork.

The bed nestled neatly against the far wall, turning what was a closet into a small little bedroom - or maybe something more akin to a small cabin in a ship.

 _Oh, this is going to be perfect,_ I grinned like a maniac. _I can have my own little bedroom here. Use the shelves above my head for clothes - I don't plan on having that many - and stick a shelf in for books or trinkets and to serve as a bedside table… oh, this is going to be fantastic._

Grabbing one of the several shelves, I awkwardly gripped the sides as I lifted it and shuffled through the door before it could slide out of my hands. Placing it parallel with the headboard of the bed against the wall on the left, I found I had realized my dream.

 _Okay. Now I can turn the other closet into a study, and the main dorm area can be like a living room. Couch, table, chairs… this is the most fun I've had in ages._ Not that home remodeling was necessarily my thing, mind you; but taking something and making it your own has a pretty big appeal.

But how would I get a couch? Or a table? All the furniture had already been provided.

 _I suppose that's a problem for another day._

Instead I pulled out my scroll for the first time and began to look through it. Initially the set up reminded me of an iPhone; enter your name, password, fingerprint, so on and so forth.

Then things began to become far less easy. _Dear lord, I have no idea how to use this operating system._ All I knew was that whoever made and programmed these scrolls didn't follow what Apple did with my iPhone. The thing was impossible for me to get the hang of. It took me an hour to get the settings to where I wanted them and understand where everything was. Then I discovered an app for the radio and simply screwed around with that, listening to the music that existed in the World of Remnant.

A lot of it was some kind of pop-ish, which wasn't really my flavor. I did find a few songs I really liked, but they were few and far between.

Then, a song called simply "Cold" began to play. The song was beautiful, but hauntingly sad - not simply for the notes, but for the lyrics that tugged at my heartstrings. The knowledge that my sister would have loved the song only made the emptiness in the pis of my stomach worse, causing me to shut off the radio and retire to my new bedroom.

I was sick and tired of music for now. In fact, I didn't want to do anything. All I wanted was to rest and escape for a little while into the unconsciousness of sleep. The bed creaked slightly as I lay down and closed my eyes, tossing and turning for a while before finally drifting into an uneasy sleep.

I was in the shop, following Roman Torchwick once more. The gun barrel waved dangerously, the threat of imminent death holding total dominion over my body and will. My throat closed up and a knot the size of Georgia formed in my chest.

"Now, since I can't have all of you following me…" smirked the criminal.

I knew what was going to happen. Even if I hadn't read the threat implicit in the words, the part of my mind still functioning with a cool logic recognized the move as the most practical thing to do. If he shot to wound me, not only would I be taken out of the equation but whoever stayed behind to deliver first aid would be too. My body took the logical thought and turned it into frantic action, slapping down at the gun while also trying to twist out of its path.

I tried desperately, but I couldn't move. I was frozen in place as the gun slowly moved its way up from my gut to my chest. "No," I gasped, barely able to force the word out. "No, no no. Please." Torchwick gazed into my face, my hazel eyes meeting his emerald green, His grin only seemed to grow wider as if he drew some sort of twisted satisfaction from my fear.

A single gloved finger tightened, and there was nothing I could do as the gun went off. It was as if a bomb had gone off where my heart used to be; pain and blood exploded from the center, and I drifted out of my body just before I could hit the tile. I looked down at my own blank stare, torso torn open, hands collapsing weakly into the gaping wound.

I looked up and saw Torchwick meet my eyes once again. Instinctively I knew that he could see me. This time when I reacted, my body listened. My feet pounded out of the shop onto pavement, fear propelling my legs into a veritable blur as shots rang out.

Ducking around a corner, I kept running until I stumbled and fell in a back alley. I tried to get up and keep going, but I was pulled back into the ground like an invisible hand had shoved me in the back.

Crawling desperately on my hands and knees was about as much as I could manage. A thousand pounds had been attached to each limb, rendering me useless as a newborn baby.

Eventually I collapsed, unable to do any more and just bracing for a shot to ring out and end it. All the muscles in my back tensed as if that could take away the pain of what was surely coming, the messenger of death that would blow me apart once more. I waited for what seemed like an eternity in a state of heightened anxiety before finally beginning to relax. My heart settled down from a snare drum to its regular base as nothing happened. My panting breaths echoed along the brick walls on either side, but Torchwick did not show up to finish me off. Instead an eerie silence had descended over the area.

Through that silence broke a single shout; of surprise, fear, or pain I couldn't tell.

 _It's my family. It's my family and Torchwick has them._

I don't know why I knew that. I don't know how I knew. There was just a certainty in my soul, a weight that attached itself to my insides and sent them plummeting. Liquid fear and anger poured through my veins in equal measure.

Exploding to my feet I ran back towards the dust shop, tearing along the streets. Taking a corner too fast I slid into a wall, scrabbling with my hands like an animal to keep me propelled forwards.

I burst back out onto the street just in time to see my family being herded onto the transport that had brought me to Beacon, Torchwick holding a gun to all of them. An incoherent scream of rage and fear leapt from my throat. The only overriding thought was to save my family from whatever horrible fate the kingpin had concocted.

"That's my family! Don't you touch them! Don't you fucking touch them!" I roared, sprinting towards Torchwick like a runaway bull. Then, just as I was closing in, darkness suddenly overtook me and I couldn't see a thing. It was as if my eyes were glued shut and darkness enveloped me.

A smug chuckle alerted me to the criminal's presence, and seconds later the ground dropped out from beneath my feet. Air rushed by me as I fell, fell, fell down, plummeting at breakneck speed. My scream was torn from my lips by the rushing wind before my ears could register the noise.

As I tumbled towards my death uncontrollably, all I knew was terror. My mind wouldn't function, paralyzed with the horror of my situation. All I could do was to desperately try and force my eyes open; though to what end, I wasn't sure. Straining harder and harder as my inevitable end came to meet me, my eyes opened.

I was only met with darkness. I wasn't sure where I was, but the rational mind that was slowly taking over recognized something familiar about my surroundings. A hand felt out with a frenetic instinct until it came into contact with a slick rectangular object.

Upon my fingers roaming across the surface, the scroll extended and provided a faint light to the inside of the closet-turned-bedroom.

I took in the faded grey blue darkness that surrounded me in the small closet space. My blankets tangled up around my legs, pulled off my upper body; I was soaked in sweat and breathing heavily. Tense muscles slowly uncoiled themselves as I sat straight up and swung my legs over the side of the bed.

 _That was terrifying. Oh hell, that dream was vivid._

My heart was still settling from the jolt of adrenaline that had helped bring me back to consciousness.

 _It was a dream. You're going to be okay. You're fine._ But the slow relief of realizing it was a dream never really came. Those nightmares were just variations on what my life had become. I had been shot, frightened out of my mind, fallen tens of thousands of feet, and had my family torn away from me in an instant. My breathing remained harsh as something caustic and heavy built up inside until it demanded I do something.

A still- though admittedly tense- exterior barely betrayed the swirling mess of emotions the dream had conjured. I was frightened, angry, and depressed. The overwhelming waves of fear tried to force its way out by making me bawl, but every time a sob rose in my throat it was choked down just before it could escape.

My second instinct was to do something physically to burn off the internal tension that was leaving me fit to burst.

 _Don't do it,_ I said, trying to sooth myself. _You're going to break something, going to do something you regret._

The best I could force myself to do was storm out into the main room, fall to my knees next to one of the unused beds, and punch down into the mattress over and over again. I bit my tongue to stop myself from screaming, keeping the blows falling until I had expended enough energy to reign myself in. It was only at that point did I completely collapse to the floor, salty tears sliding down my cheeks.

As the waterworks quickly faded I was left restless. Sure, some of the tension had faded. But I still wanted to _break_ something - as bad as that sounded. I needed to get rid of all the tension and emotion that was still rolling around my system.

In a way, I wish I had just cried myself out. Though it left you empty and tired afterwards, I found it preferable to the unbridled anguish that was still pouring through me.

 _Okay, let's at least try to make this semi-constructive._ I racked my mind as fast as I could before I could loose my tenuous control. _What'd help get it out if my system right now? Music?_ Singing or listening to tunes was my usual go to, though admittedly I had never used it in this extreme of a mood.

My mouth opened as I tried to force a melody to materialize but only air rushed out, ending in a squeak at my voice finally cut in. _What the hell was I even going to sing? There's no music that I know that can encompass what I'm experiencing right now._

"Damnit," I croaked, eyes burning. _What can I do? Do something, I need to do -_ Unbidden my mother's gentle countenance rose to my mind. " _You know," she counseled me as I paced, frustrated with the amount of homework I still had to do. "A good way to burn off that energy and emotion is to exercise."_

" _What, like go running?" I grumbled in anger._

" _Yes! That would be fantastic."_

" _Yeah, sure. I'll do that."I responded, trying to keep the frustration from directing itself towards my mother. Despite my initial hesitance, I ended up throwing some shoes on and running a few laps around the neighborhood. I arrived back at the front door of my house a little worn out, but feeling much better._

 _Okay. Exercise. But where?_

Sifting through my memories, I recalled seeing a gym within the building. I hurried back into my little sleeping quarters and snatched up my scroll, growling in annoyance as I navigated the unfamiliar system to pull up a map. Then, without much thought or hesitation, I headed out the door and down the halls, certainly passing many a sleeping student.

I managed to make my way to the gym without too much trouble. The map on my scroll certainly had a large part to do with that, but I'll take as much credit as I can. The facility was really top notch, and the best part was I recognized almost everything. There were free weights, treadmills, various weight machines, and other workout equipment that sat on the inside of a massive indoor track. _Really though, considering out anatomy is the same, you have to work the muscles mechanically the same way. There's not a ton of room for getting innovative._

There was only one other person using the gym at this hour in the morning, a girl with blonde hair who was currently working a speedbag.

 _Alright,_ I thought, keen to chase my dreams away. _Let's get started._

What I should have done is started stretching, using the exercises that I had been taught to loosen up my leg. I just didn't have the patience or the willpower to care at this point. I was raring to go, and there was no way I was going to take a time out to gingerly do some kind of yoga.

It was at this point as I stepped onto the textured rubber surface of the track I realized that I had left my room in nothing but what I had gone to bed in. On my person was a white muscle shirt and loose athletic shorts - thank goodness. If I had arrived in nothing but my boxer briefs I might well have died of embarrassment. What had grabbed my attention however, was that I could feel the texture of the track. On my bare feet.

Right. I had left without putting any shoes on,

 _You know what? Screw it. I've come this far, haven't I?_ Determined not to let such a trivial thing as proper footwear deter me, I began to get ready for my run.

 _Okay, this track is…_ My eyes roved around briefly before alighting on a sign. _400 meters long? That's ridiculous for an indoor track._ That made the math easy however. Four laps would give me a mile.

 _Okay. Let's see where we stand._ My lacrosse coach had wanted me to be able to run two consecutive miles in twelve minutes, which was never going to happen. I was a pretty big dude for being six feet tall. It was conducive to being fast, powerful, and explosive. Maintaining that speed for any real length of time however was far more difficult. On a good day I might be able to run two consecutive seven minute miles if I killed myself doing it, but six was way out of my league. That would require far more dedication to running outside of practice than I had in me. Still, at least my coach's obsession with timing gave me a benchmark to work from. _I think considering my injured leg, I'm going to give myself eighteen minutes. Two nine minute miles. Shouldn't be difficult._

Without any further hesitation, I started the timer and took off at a nice jog around the track. I settled into a rhythm as I rounded the first bend. _In-two-three-four-out-two-three-four._ Synchronizing my breathing with my footsteps helped focus on something other than the ache of long distance running. Pushing my body, I found the familiar balancing point between speed and being able to maintain it.

I monotonously slogged around the track, breathing like an asthmatic metronome. Straight. Corner. Straight. Corner. Straight.

A weight slammed to the ground with a loud clap, causing the blonde to curse briefly, shake her head, and move to pick it up.

 _The gun fired as I watched the blood fountain, my leg being swept out from under me by the most savage impact I had ever felt. But that was all I felt - the impact. The pain had not yet registered with my mind. As my hands instinctively clamped over the gaping wound, my palms made contact with an area of my body that was never supposed to be exposed -_

The fear and pain rushed back, taking me out of my world for a split second only to drop me back in full of adrenaline and panic. My teeth ground together and I pumped my trembling hands, picking up my pace until I was practically sprinting - as if fears were something that could be outrun.

Finally, I finished the eighth lap and slowed to a walk, both hands resting in the back of my head. I was worn out, my legs and lungs burned with the fire of exertion, and emotionally nothing had been fixed - but it felt more manageable somehow now that I had worked off all the excess energy. There was still a dagger planted deep within my heart, but the agony wasn't overwhelming anymore. "Okay," I gasped to myself. "You're okay Glen." Pulling my scroll from my pocket to check the time, I rubbed my eyes in shock as I stared at the number I was being presented.

 _Eleven minutes and forty-seven seconds._ I shook the scroll in disbelief. _No way. No way. Maybe it stopped? Something went wrong, something. Did I miscount the number of laps I had to run?_

I, Glen Foray, had just run two six minute miles. Something I had never done before in the peak of my fitness I had achieved after suffering a potentially crippling injury and jogging the first couple of laps. Even now, when I should have still been bent double and gasping for breath, I felt more recovered than I had any right to be. It just didn't make any sense.

 _How on Earth…_ I began, the gears in my head turning. _No. It's not Earth. Remnant. It's not possible on Earth, but it's possible here because of aura._ After all, wasn't one of the side effects supposed to be increased endurance and stamina? _I wonder how else that manifests itself? Increased strength… Well, there's a bunch of iron here. Let's figure it out._

What else was I going to, right? I mean, hearing about aura and what it could do was a little out there. But experiencing it? That was a totally different story. I don't care who they are: if you tell anyone they have super strength they're going to see how much they can lift, and I was no exception.

Unfortunately, before I could test myself, I had to make it to the iron first.

I took one step towards the weights and immediately regretted my impulsive decision not to stretch. The injured leg locked up underneath me, causing a stumble and a fall as I clutched at my thigh. Now, don't you worry about me. I hadn't torn a muscle or anything serious. What I did have was the mother of all cramps causing me some… discomfort. "Ow ow ow, sonofa…" I grunted as I kneaded the muscle.

Slowly, ever so slowly, I began to stretch out my quads. It was a necessary evil, although thoroughly unpleasant. As the stretch increased so did the pain, causing me to groan aloud.

"Hey," someone asked. "You doing okay down there?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'll be - uhh, I'll be fine. Just a nasty cramp." Standing over me looking down with concern was the young woman who I had noted earlier. She had a mass of long blonde hair that was swept back over either ear. Her eyes were a strange dark blue, almost purple - something I had never seen before and found mesmerizing. Though I might admit, keeping my eyes locked on hers was perhaps more of a comment on the attire that she wore. It was a orange tank top and black skin tight shorts. It was … well … I don't know how to put this delicately… it was kind of showy-offy. And boy, was there something to show off-

Thankfully I was saved by my leg finally giving up its intent to tear itself apart, the cramp fading away as quickly as it arrived. "Ohh, that's better."

"You need a hand?" the stranger asked, stretching out a limb to clasp mine.

"That'd be great thanks." With that she hauled me to my feet with a surprising ease. "Hey, thanks for checking on me. I appreciate it."

"No problem," grinned the lilac eyes as I dusted myself off. "It's nice to meet you. I'm Yang Xiao-Long."

I accepted the outstretched hand once more as I introduced myself. "I'm Glen. Glen Foray." At this, Yang paused mid-shake and quirked her head to the side.

"Glen Foray? Are you sure?"

"No, it's really Jeffery Johnson. Yes, I'm sure what my name is," I joked.

Yang just shook her head, ignoring my attempt at humor. "You weren't by chance at a dust shop about two weeks ago, were you?"

"By chance I was. To what end are you asking?"

"Were you the civilian that got shot by Roman Torchwick?" Yang enquired.

 _A ringing in my ears, a warm viscous liquid flowing through my fingers. The pain was just beginning to filter in, crashing in waves through my body and hammering my skull-_

"Yeah. I was." I smiled weakly as the flashback left me. "How'd you know? I don't think they were allowed to publish my name or picture in any of the papers."

"No, I didn't get that from the news. I got the name from my sister." Yang looked expectantly, as if I should know who she was talking about, but all she got in response was a blank stare. "My sister Ruby. Ruby Rose."

"I got nothing," I shrugged somewhat apologetically.

"She helped your buddies fight off Torchwick?"

"I've still got nothing. I must have missed her. To be fair though, I was lying on the floor bleeding out and then in a hospital, so…yeah," I trailed off. "That made it hard to meet new people."

"Well you're both here now. You'll have to meet sometime!" Yang bounced up and down in excitement.

 _Eye contact, my friend. Do not let your gaze dip._

"It's so cute," she giggled. "Ruby's all concerned, wants to know that you made it out alright."

"Really?" I raised an eyebrow. "That's a lot of interest for no interaction. Do I have to worry about attacks on my sanctity perpetuated by your sister?"

"Wha- no! She's as far from that as you can get," scowled Yang.

Holding up both hands, I backed down from her fierce gaze. "Sorry. I'm sure she's not. Bad joke on my part. But why does she want to see me so bad?"

"Well…" Yang glanced up at the ceiling as if wondering how to phrase what she said next. "I think it's more that she blames herself a little bit. She wonders if she could have done something differently, shown up earlier, something to prevent you from getting seriously injured. I think it'd just put her mind at ease to see you up and about. You know? She just takes her responsibility to help people very seriously."

"Yeah. Yeah, no problem. I'd be happy to help her feel better about it. It wasn't her fault in any way," I said dismissively.

"So I keep telling her," the blonde sighed. "But thanks Glen."

"No problem. Could you put your number into my ph-scroll so we could set that up? Otherwise I don't know when I'll see you again." I held out the device for the blonde to take. She did, though with a sly smirk.

"Huh… that's a pretty slick way to get a girl's scroll number," Yang grinned flirtatiously. "I must admit, I didn't take you for the type."

I just rolled my eyes, not willing to take the bait. "Right. That's absolutely what I intended. Use some false concern for your sister's well being to get your number. Curses, you've seen through me."

Yang pouted as she entered her information. "So sarcastic. Are you saying you don't want to have my number?"

"I refuse to answer on the grounds that you're going to misconstrue anything I say to suit your purposes," I grinned.

"And what would that purpose be?"

"To make me awkward, uncomfortable, and stumble over my words." I graciously accepted back my scroll, smiling smugly. "But I always enjoy cheating a person of such premeditated contempt."

Yang took a step back, hand on hip. "I'm impressed, short stack. The confidence is stunning."

"I'll take the compliment, but short stack?" I looked at the blonde quizzically. "I mean, you're pretty tall yourself, but I still have a couple inches on you."

"Mhmm," Yang admitted. "But have you seen the rest of the guys at Beacon?"

"No… I must say I'm not familiar." The only two I had met were Fox and Yatsuhashi… _Ahh, I think I see where this is going._ After all, Fox was an inch or two taller than me, and Yatsuhashi was the hulk not turned green. If the rest of the populace of Beacon followed suit…

"Well, safe to say, they're all significantly taller than you. Do you even break six feet?" she chuckled, flicking me in the chest.

"I'm six feet tall," I grumbled, rubbing my chest.

"Are you?" smirked the blonde.

"Well… I'm just under," I admitted with a scowl. "But a quarter of an inch is practically nothing."

"So you're five foot eleven then, short stack?"

"Yeah… I suppose. Just… oh, whatever," I conceded in defeat. "Hey, could I ask a favor of you? Would you be willing to spot me for some lifting?"

The blonde appeared to consider it briefly before replying. "I'll do it, but for permission to call you short stack," Yang bargained.

 _This is so demeaning to be called that by someone who is shorter than me,_ I complained internally. Really though, if I wanted to find out how much I could lift safely right now, there wasn't another option. _I could wait. Or, I could find someone else._ I spared a glance around the room once more, confirming we were still the only two here. _So I could wait. But... I really don't want to wait._

"You drive a hard bargain," I grumbled, sticking out a hand to shake on it.

"And you're a sucker," Yang quipped while sealing the deal. "I'd have done it for nothing. Can't have you hurting yourself when that leg gives out!"

A sigh escaped my lips, hanging my head in despair while Yang chuckled in front of me. "I feel like Coco and you would get along far too well, and that would not be good for my health."

"Coco Adel? Hey, I've met her while trying to keep Rubes from pestering the gal. Apparently they met while waiting to hear what would become of you in the hospital."

"And so my nightmare becomes a reality," I said melodramatically.

"I'm hurt," Yang said in mock offence. "I'm no nightmare."

"Not on your own, certainly," I began, before thinking better of it. "But I better stop before I give you too many ideas to act upon. Now are we going to lift or what?"

"We're only waiting on you," she replied. "What do you want to do first?"

 _Well, considering how I don't trust my leg to not give out under me when I start doing heavy weights, squats are out… I could maybe try cleans, but it also uses legs, so probably not… I guess I'll bench then._

"Let's bench," I suggested.

"Kay." Yang gestured with an arm for me to follow. "This way, short stack."

Now, someone is invariably going to realize that there are more than three lifts to choose from, and certainly more than one that involve arms and upper body only. That's true. But those three are the only lifts I really know my max for. Why? Because those are the main three they care about in football, that's why. If I want to get a solid idea of how much aura was helping me, I had to know where I was starting from.

"So here we…" Yang paused, giving me a strange look. "You're not wearing any shoes."

"Yes. That would indeed be an accurate assessment," I nodded dryly.

"You do know we're lifting, right?"

I shot the blonde an unamused glance. "We're benching, not bowling. It won't matter."

"Well, I tried," Yang shrugged.

"If there are no more objections?" I hesitated a second before continuing on. "Let's rack up a twenty-five on either side to start."

"That's all?" Yang raised a singular eyebrow. "I don't see why you needed a spotter for that."

"I'm just warming up. It'll get heavier," I promised.

And so it did. After two sets of ten with the twenty-fives, I skipped up to a forty five on either side. That proved to light as well, so I skipped up again to a forty five and a twenty five - making one hundred and eighty five pounds. _I am now benching my body weight,_ I thought as I settled my hands into place. _Or at least, what it used to be before the injury._

Even so, what was normally a challenging exercise still felt too light. I surpassed my previous three-rep max of two hundred and fifteen pounds with ease. In fact, it wasn't till I approached three hundred pounds that I started to struggle. "Alright. Put on three plates," I ordered.

"Now we're talking." Yang gave me a thumbs up of approval as she slid on another forty five pound plate with her free hand and locked it in place.

"Now we're talking, she says," I mimicked in a whiny voice as I got set. "It's only three hundred and fifteen pounds. Nothing to get excited over."

"I could do it," Yang boasted, pounding her chest. "I am Yang Xiao-Long. No one out lifts Yang!"

"Does Yang also now refer to herself in third person?" I snarked.

"That is Queen Yang to you, peasant," the blonde said, parading up and down behind me.

"Yes ma'am." _Hands a little wider than shoulder width, even on the bar. Feet planted on either side of the bench. Back arched slightly._ "I'm ready."

"Okay, short stack. I've got you." Yang took her position behind me, ready to help when needed. She was serving an important job; if she wasn't there and I found myself unable to lift the weight up to the rack, it would invariably come back down to rest on my chest. Or head. Or more likely, neck. And heavy weights versus delicate instruments like my throat was not a battle I was likely to win.

"Hup!" I hoisted the weight off the rack, arms already straining to keep the bar up while they were locked. _Here goes nothing._ I slowly lowered the bar to my chest and then immediately strained as hard as I could to lift it back up. _Exhale on the exertion._ Shakily the weight crept it's way back up to the top before repeating the journey twice more. Then finally, midway through the fourth rep, my strength began to fail. It moved upwards briefly and stalled out, slowly beginning to sink down. "Help," I grunted, but Yang was already there to assist me in re-racking the bar.

I simply lay on the sweat-soaked bench and let my mouth hang open as I recuperated from my Herculean efforts.

"Ha! Your face is so red," Yang teased as I slowly hauled myself into a sitting position.

"Yeah. I don't doubt it. That was a hell of a lot of weight. Holy crap… I feel like Captain America right now." I flexed my arms and hands, imagining I could feel the power flowing through the them.

"Captain who?"

"Ahh, never you mind. I just feel like a super soldier right now," I replied, amending my previous statement. _Note to self, eliminate pop culture references. They are no longer relevant, and will just draw suspicion to me. Also, think of a story to cover up slips and or ask Ozpin during our next chat._

A finger poked me in the back. "Pop."

Now it was my turn to be confused. "Pop?" I asked, spinning around to face the blonde.

"That's me busting your ego," Yang informed me with a mock seriousness. "At this school, even little old me can lift that weight."

"Oh really?" I shot back, eyebrow raised.

"Really, 'super soldier,'" came the immediate reply.

"By all means then, show me how it's done." Standing, I gestured in a grandiose manner towards the three hundred and fifteen pounds that sat there. "Whatever is the lady's pleasure."

 _There's no way she can lift that,_ I though with some confidence. _Not a chance._

"Okay then short stack." The blonde paraded around and situated herself under the bar. Switching spots with her, I assumed the position of spotter under the assumption that I would have to help her out.

Oh, how wrong I was.

Yang hoisted the three hundred fifteen and began. _One, two, three, four, five, six, seven… What the-_

Yang began to tire and racked the bar after the seventh had been completed. "And that's how it's done my diminutive friend." She stood and crossed her arms under her breasts, wearing a self-satisfied grin on her pretty features. "Anything to say to that?"

"My pride," I mumbled, brows scrunched as I tried to process what happened.

"What pride?" laughed the blonde as she began putting up the plates back where they were supposed to go.

"A point well made," I said. "But how… That doesn't make sense. I mean… you're a woman."

"Oh?" Yang said. "And why would that make a difference?"

"No no no," I hurried to explain. "Not sexist. Not like that, just… Okay, biologically women aren't as physically strong as men are, particularly in terms of upper body strength." I sighed and put my head in my hands. _Nice going Foray. Open mouth, insert foot._ "Okay, I'm afraid no matter what I say it's going to make it worse, but hear me out; in terms of upper body strength again, it's rare to find a woman who can bench her body weight or more than her body weight but it's pretty much an achievable milestone for almost any guy. No slight against you. I mean, assuming I'm right here, it just makes the fact that you blew me out of the water even more impressive; I was just trying to understand _how._ Because it doesn't make sense based on what I know. I mean, for heaven's sake, you're lifting probably close to two and a half times your body weight with your arms. Which is… impossible, because generally women have about half the upper body strength of a male equivalent due to smaller muscles in that region powered by estrogen and not testosterone, and there's a greater amount of fatty tissues in the area - not that you're fat, or that's a blanket statement or anything, it's just biology - adipose tissue, you know. It's part of what supports the specialized exocrine glands- I need to quit talking."

I finally managed to close my mouth and stop the rambling. Knowing a lot about anatomy and physiology was fantastic in almost every application, but my knowledge-vomit probably was not one. Undoubtedly I had only dug my grave deeper as I tried to science my way out of it.

 _Mammaries,_ my brain helpfully supplied as I let myself slump to the ground, lying on my back and covering my face. _You were about to explain how breasts were part of the exocrine system._

 _Shut up,_ I moaned internally. _Damn you Sigmund Freud._

"Kill me now," I moaned externally. "Can we forget this whole thing happened? Because I'm good with forgetting this whole thing happened." There was a silence that stretched out for several seconds that only increased my tension as I dared not uncover my eyes. Then, just as I really might have rolled over and died of embarrassment, Yang apparently cracked. Peals of laughter rang out that, while they helped dissipate my anxiety, did nothing for my glowing red face. "I'm glad one of us is enjoying this."

"It's amazing," giggled Yang. "What happened to not making you uncomfortable, stumbling over your words, all that talk from earlier?"

"You see, I have this thing called foot-in-mouth disease," I started, finally removing my hands from my eyes. "It doesn't show up very often, but when it does it's usually a pretty big screw up."

"So I can tell." Yang stood over me offering a hand up that I reluctantly accepted. "How long have you had aura?"

"Since my injury," I answered, still determined to look anywhere except directly at her.

"So two-ish weeks?"

I nodded the affirmative.

"And you've not received any aura training I assume?"

"You have to have aura training?" _So… You have to work it out like a muscle, or what? Table that for another Ozpin discussion._

"There you have it. You should be able to lift more than me, yeah. But the difference is I have good control of my aura, allowing me to do more than you," Yang explained.

"So, aura gives you some advantages straight off the bat, but what it can do increases exponentially based on training with it?" I enquired. _Note three: Find out if there are exercises for aura I can do._

"Yeah, that's basically the long and the short of it. To be honest, You're in pretty good shape. Don't feel bad about losing out to me," Yang added.

"Flattery will get you nowhere," I shook my head. "You're trying to make me feel better, but I think the disparity is more than you let on."

"You're too sweet," Yang cooed with hand over heart. "All a girl just wants to know is that she can beat up the other guy."

"Whatever you say, honey." My mouth opened wide and I yawned cavernously, holding a hand in front of my face. "Jeez, I am worn out." It seemed that my emotional episodes, the brutal two miles I had run, maxing in bench press, and dealing with Yang had taken its toll. Couple all that up with my rough sleep, and I was finally finding myself dead on my feet.

"Oh come on, we only did one lift," said Yang, taking another dig at me.

"It's a culmination of things," I protested tiredly.

"Yeah, the culmination of one lift… and a jog."

"Oh come off it," I groaned. "But I'd hate to keep you from your workout. What is it, like… Yeah, six thirty ish. I got plenty of time to go back to sleep."

"Alright then short stack. See ya around. You better leg it to your dorm if you want to get any rest." Yang grinned as I turned, took two steps, paused, and turned back to her.

"Did you just make a pun? About my injury?" I asked incredulously.

"Yup," she laughed unrepentantly.

All I could do was shake my head and a finger. "That's messed up, man."

"Sleep tight Glen," Yang chuckled.

"Yeah. You too… ahh, whatever." I waved off the unintentional gaffe as I continued on my way.

"Careful there," called the blonde. "It looks like your foot-in-mouth isn't done yet!"

"Shut up! It was a knee-jerk response," I shouted back.

"Oh, and Glen? I'll get in touch about getting together with my little sis. Okay?"

"Yeah, sure thing."

Yang smiled gratefully. "Thanks! See ya!"

"Bye."

I made my way out of the gym and back into the grandiose halls of Beacon. The carpet felt wonderful on my bare soles as

I began my trek back to my room. _Uhh, where am I going again?_

Opening up my scroll, I had difficulty finding my way to the school navigation app in my quest to find my room. Ironic, right? Difficulty finding the navigation app… Ironic or not however, it perhaps was a sign of what was about to happen.

 _Okay. If I just enter my room number here I'll… Oh._ My fingers froze in place above the screen as unease filled my being. _It was… It was… Oh crap. I don't remember my room number._ I looked around at Beacon's maze of corridors and felt my heart sink.

 _Damnit Glen… you had one job._

Sleep might not be so easy in coming as I thought.

* * *

Ozpin sat upright in his desk chair as he considered the chess match of the previous day. The headmaster loved chess not just for the intellectual exercise, but for what it could tell you about the person you played against. In a highly skilled individual it was difficult to deduce much about them, but Glen's lack of knowledge made him delightfully easy to read. His moves weren't a part of some established strategy, but off his own wit and impulse.

Glen started out choosing the black pieces, which was an interesting choice - if an somewhat uninformed one. In theory white should always win or tie assuming perfect play. Of course, since even Ozpin had yet to memorize all the 10^120 possible iterations of the chess board. He was close, mind you- but not quite there yet. As such, perfect play was certainly not a guarantee even against Ozpin. What it did shows was a tendency towards being reactionary rather than playing the aggressor. Glen wanted to try and understand his opponent's strategy before developing a plan of his own.

He was a thinker; a planner. Nowhere was that more evidenced than his enquiring questions and in the time he took to carefully craft each move in the first game.

However, in the second game Glen chose white. It wasn't an instantaneous choice like black had been in the first round, but rather came with a level of hesitation. Ozpin had no doubt that if the rules of the game had remained the same, Glen would have chosen black again. But with the introduction of the timer he instead adapted his strategy.

 _He realized he couldn't beat me on skill alone,_ Ozpin mused. _So instead he tried to bend the rules of the game to his side in simply completing a move as fast as possible. Choosing white was an extension of that, allowing him to take the advantage in running my clock down first._

It was a bold move, if one that did not pay off. The imposed pressure of the timer decreased his ability to make good choices. Even so, Glen's instincts more often than not led him in the right direction.

He was good humored in defeat, but not willing to just accept it as inevitable. He had been able to talk about his world- even if it was just generalities - which spoke well to his resiliency in fighting back from the extreme low he was at little under a month ago. _He has also received basic training in several martial arts, which must be taken into consideration._

Ozpin sensed that the young man would need to be able to fight in the future, both for his safety and for the safety of others around him. But who would be such a fit for him? The solution of pairing him up one on one to learn from Ms. Goodwitch was unlikely to ever happen, given how stuffed his deputy's schedule already was. Although she would be the best for him to study under, only being able to meet rarely it wouldn't do Glen any favors. On the other side, simply placing Glen in a combat class would do him more harm than good. Sure it was the easiest and simplest solution, but it wouldn't be very helpful to be beaten by those who had been training for far longer.

 _Private lessons it is then,_ mused Ozpin. _But with who? Peter?_ The wizard shook his head quickly. _No, it's too early to crush the boy's soul with such an acquired taste as Peter Port._

The issue then became what other teacher would be qualified to teach him hand to hand combat - and it had to be hand to hand. There was already a base to work from in martial arts whereas sword fighting would take a much longer time to master. _Perhaps a student then?_

The more Ozpin thought on it, the more he liked the idea. _Now I just need a hand to hand combat specialist who would be willing to teach; someone who can add some aggression to his passive nature._

It only took a small amount of searching on his scroll to compile a list of those who fit his needs before a single name popped out at the wizard. _Perfect._

The student in question had everything Ozpin was looking for. _Yang Xiao-Long._ Her credentials were indeed exceptional. Trained and adept in several martial arts to the point of being undefeated in single combat at her old school, she had the background needed to aid Glen. Not only this, but she had even done some tutoring back at Signal. Looking deeper the reasons only grew stronger. Ozpin believed that their personalities would mesh very nicely- both of them having adopted a happy go lucky attitude.

 _And unfortunate as it is, Miss Xiao-Long has experienced the loss of two parents. Though tragic, it puts her in a position to offer greater support especially considering she virtually became the mother to her sister._ As an added bonus the young woman was only a first year; that left her all four years to train Glen up to the level he needed to be at.

The headmaster leaned back, allowing the rhythmic thunk of clockwork to sooth him. The caffeine from his last coffee was wearing out of his system, leaving Ozpin struggling to stay awake. Wearily he pulled his spectacles off of his nose and set them atop his desk, rubbing at his eyes. _Just a few minutes rest won't hurt,_ the wizard managed to convince himself. _But only a few. There's still plenty of work to be done._ His eyes dipped shut and he tell fast asleep, slumping forwards onto his desk. There he remained peacefully- until Glynda found him in the morning.

 **A/N: Yep, it's been another four weeks. Double the time I wanted, and this time I don't have the excuse of a stupidly long one off that required plenty of research. If you would humor me for a moment, I shall explain:**

 **I usually get the bulk of my writing done on the weekends when I have time. But the weekend after last chapter I was invited to be the escort for a friend at the Dogwood Festival. She and I had a great time, but I got to spend no time writing.**

 **So, I piecemealed as I could during the week - but then the next weekend was prom for me. Asked a girl, we went, and had fun. Did the whole after prom thing, had great time, but again I didn't get much writing done. At this point I had resigned myself to a three week chapter because I just didn't have enough done.**

 **Then, Sunday afternoon, I received the news that after prom a friend had passed away. We weren't particularly close, but I did know them. That event sucked the desire to write out for a little while.**

 **My apologies for being late again, but real life happens sometimes. I'm sure you guys understand, and I appreciate it. Hopefully this being the longest chapter so far in the story kind of makes up for it, and forgive my grammar and syntax.**

 **Anyway, we're setting up some fun stuff now in the story! Glen things he's hot stuff, Yang shows him he's not, and the poor boy is starting to realize how out of his depth he is. Now Yang is looking to be his mentor and I'm sure she's going to evaluate his skills in a spar. So, fight scene incoming. I'm going to just shamelessly try and build some hype.**

 **Also, I know Le MAO's got some beef with Yang… and Yang's gonna become more involved. Sorry my dude… But I'm not apologizing. It just makes sense. XD**

 **Anyway, I truly do appreciate the comments and reviews you guys leave. Feel free to tell me what you think, and stay classy. See you on the flip side!**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: I'm back! And I know I haven't been up in a while, but I'm on summer break now. The last month of schoolwork + finals was murder. I'm back though, more irregular updates to follow… though hopefully never this long in between chapters again. I appreciate all the follows, favorites, and comments - and that so many people find and enjoy this story is still crazy to me. Love all you guys. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!**

Perhaps it was a warning sign when Coco looked like it was her birthday, Christmas, and Halloween all rolled into one. The gunner showed off an enthusiasm in her grin that was less of a comfort and reminded me more of a shark. A shark with bright white, well taken care of teeth.

"So, let me get this straight," Coco asked with a little chuckle. "Little old you is going to fight Yang Xiao-Long?"

I bobbed my head in uncertainty. "Well, it's not a fight per se. We're just going to spar so she can get a feel for where I'm at. That's all."

"She's going to mess you up," Coco laughed with delight, as if my impending abuse was equivalent to her being told she had been granted an all-expense paid spa and shopping trip. "Oh man, this is too funny."

"It's a spar, Coco. Not a no holds barred fight. I think I'll be fine." It was a point I had been trying to hammer home through the fashionista's thick skull ever since she had learned about the event in question.

To this Coco shook her head at my apparent naivete. "You haven't watched any huntsman spars, have you?" It was my turn to indicate the negative as her Cheshire Cat smile only grew wider. "Well, to give you an idea of how intense it is, there are no restrictions besides not killing your opponent. Or injuring them too badly. Live ammo, explosives, razor sharp blades - all of it is fair game."

"Nice try. Who in their right mind would let a bunch of teens and young adults go at it with live weaponry?"

Coco just wagged a finger at me. "You forget about aura."

"And you forget I'm not a moron," I shot back, arms crossed. "You're just trying to get me all riled up about this before it starts." A snort escaped me. "Aura, my foot. What about when aura runs out?"

"In a sanctioned fight, the aura levels of each combatant is monitored. When they fall too low the fight is called before either one can be hurt," chipped in Yatsuhashi from where he sat cross-legged on his bed.

To be fair, I didn't know aura could be measured in such a fashion. Yatsuhashi had, intentionally or not, blunted one of my attacks. "Okay. Even so, you're trusting hormonal teens to stop when it's called and use live explosives in what I'm sure is a very destructible environment?"

All I received in response from Coco was a slow nod, her lower lip jutting out. "Pretty much sums it up, yeah."

"Right," I raised my eyebrows in exasperation.

"Glen?" interjected a soft australian voice. "Coco's not … she's not joking. We really do use live weapons."

"Et tu, Velvet?" I said, turning to the bunny. The quiet girl's affirmation of Coco's claim was perhaps the most worrying.

 _She's certainly not one to mess with others. Actually Velvet's shut down a couple instances where Coco tried to tease me. Too much of a bleeding heart. And Yatsuhashi as well. Not because of a bleeding heart, but a sense of honor and decency. And if he didn't bother to speak out either-_

My train of thought was rudely interrupted by a rather abrupt shock.

"What the hell!" I cried out, jumping and spinning to face an entirely unrepentant Coco. "Did you just-"

"Slap your ass? Yeah, you were spacing out there. And all I have to say is it's a pretty solid seven out of ten," the gunner grinned lecherously over her aviators.

 _Just take the compliment_ , some part of my mind suggested. As I rubbed my wounded posterior I instead glared at Coco, feeling rather affronted.

"What the hell, Coco? What - who in their right mind - what kind of response is that?"

"Careful there, champ. You're losing your silver tongue. All I asked what the heck that meant, eyy too, or whatever." Coco replied cooly.

"I just didn't hear you! What about that justified - especially when there are so many other opt- No, damn it Fox!"

Unbeknownst to me, the dark-skinned member of team Coffee had snuck up and had - what else - slapped me in the rear. Turn the other cheek, my mind joked. The blind man chuckled as I bent down and hooked one of his legs in a rugby style tackle, driving him back towards one of the unoccupied beds. Hopping back on one leg to keep his balance, Fox simply muscled his way out of the hold and, since I was crouched low to generate power, put me in a headlock.

"No, no no, stop!" I said in a strangled voice, fruitlessly trying to escape as Fox gave me a noogie. After a couple of seconds of torture my captor relented and let me stumble away with hair askew, but a huge grin on my face.

"Boys," groaned Coco, rolling her eyes.

"Hey," I protested, the effect ruined by the smile that was still in place and refused to leave. "You've lost all right to say that."

"Since when?"

"Since you slapped my butt!" I exclaimed.

"So did Fox, but let me guess, he can still say it because he's a dude?" joked Coco.

"First off… call me crazy, but I don't think Fox is going to be saying much of anything." The man in question just shook his head with a slight smile on his face, flopping back down in a chair.

"Too true," Coco nodded. "I'm still waiting for an answer though, champ."

My brows drew together as I tried to cast my mind back to what we were talking about before. "What was that?"

"I asked what it was that you said to Vel."

"What did… Oh yeah. Well, it's in reference to a famous play." I paused briefly to concoct a brief summary, as I doubted Coco would tolerate a full discussion on the Bard and the plot of Julius Caesar. "A leader is betrayed by the senate and stabbed to death. As he lays dying he sees his friend Brutus had conspired with them so he chokes out 'Et tu Brute?' which is Latin for 'You too, Brutus?' So I substituted Velvet's name in reference to her betrayal by joining your side."

"Are you done?" Coco asked unimpressed.

"Yea-"

"NERD!" Coco yelled, causing me to jump as she cut me off.

Velvet's rabbit ears twitched agitatedly at that. "Coco! That's rude! He was - he was just answering your question. Don't you want to learn about different cultures?"

The gunner just tossed her hair flippantly. "Not when it's so boring. Oum, it sounded like I was back in remedial English class trying to write an essay."

"Wait," I interjected, throwing my arms out to prevent the conversation from moving on. "You're telling me you failed a-"

"Failed an English class, yes. Before you get any wise ideas I will have you know I have a firm command of the English language."

"Big words, Coco. How many of those did you not understand but used them because you thought you'd sound smarter?" Literally rising to my needling, Coco stood and threw a jab at me. "Nice!" I grinned through gritted teeth, rubbing my shoulder. "Solid effort there!"

"She simply did not turn in the majority of her assignments," said Yatsuhashi with a frown, simultaneously defending and criticizing his teammate.

"Yeah, that's right," Coco said. "I was lazy, not an idiot."

"That's arguably the same thiiinng," I sang, looking to elicit another response from the brunette. In the short time me and Coco had spent verbally prodding one another, I had noted a particular phenomena. Every time she didn't have a response the girl tended to take a swing at me. It was the darndest thing.

 _I have come to the startling conclusion that perhaps it's the result of being in what is akin to military academies for years upon years. Shocking, I know. In all fairness to the lady though, I could see the necessity of it. In order to fight those… things, the Grimm…_ Unbidden, images of the demonic creatures in question rose to the front of my mind and sent an involuntary shudder through my body. _You probably have to have a certain mindset to do that. Like a fighter pilot. If you don't believe you're the baddest, the toughest, or damn near invincible, there's no way you'd strap yourself into a hunk of metal that travels at mach speed while being shot at. Same must go for fighting off hellspawn with limited numbers. It takes a certain kind of crazy._

Nevertheless, when it came to our little jests, it made her aggressively predictable. The next punch was easy to deflect, her fist slapped aside so my poor shoulder didn't have to take the brunt of her next assault.

"You're learning, Foray," Coco admitted begrudgingly. "But you need to do far better than that to have a prayer against Xiao-Long."

"So you keep telling me," I grunted as Coco went back and took her seat and I leaned back against the foot of Yatsuhashi's bed. The giant glanced up, and then returned to his peaceful meditation. "So, ah, I can't help but notice no one has dismissed the live fire idea yet."

Three of the team members exchanged glances with one another before Velvet once more spoke up. "Glen, we - we really do use live weapons in duels."

I stared at Velvet for a good long moment, but the shy bunny didn't break. "You're serious, aren't you?"

"Serious as a beowulf," said Coco.

"Holy cow," I breathed, rubbing my temples.

"Yeah, and the Xiao-Long chick is packing some serious heat," Coco continued. "She has these wicked bracers that fire a complement of twelve-gauge shells - kinetic and solid shot, I believe. Plus, they fold up into these really cute bracelets." The gunner glanced at her wrists, turning them back and forth. "I might have to get me one."

 _So, I'm going hand to hand with two wrist mounted cannons. A twelve gage shotgun in my face? How do I even prepare to fight that?_

The simple answer was I couldn't. "Geez, what have I gotten myself into?" I groaned.

The day hadn't started off particularly brilliantly, as you may well remember. Barefoot and without any knowledge of where I was, I decided my best recourse of action would be to swallow a little bit of pride and ask Yang if there was a way to figure that out. Unfortunately, Yang had apparently done enough before I talked with her to conclude her workout.

Back to square one.

Instead, I decided to try and retrace my steps from my first day. What that meant was - since I couldn't figure out the inside of the school - going outside. I'm sure I walked at least an extra mile around the outside of the school building until I came to the front. Back through the doors, winding through the halls, snagging a banana from the cafeteria, all in the pursuit of making my way over to the base of Ozpin's office.

In all fairness, it was a giant clock tower that was visible from almost everywhere on campus. There was certainly a more efficient route, but I was going to stick with what I knew. No more getting lost.

Walking into Ozpin's office uninvited was a rather nerve racking ordeal. I knew Ozpin was an extremely important and influential individual, and even though he had taken some interest in me I didn't have the familiarity with him to come barging into his office. I exited the elevator slowly only to have my fears dispelled.

"Good morning, Mister Foray." The headmaster's cool eyes roved over my disheveled form from where he stood by one of the windows. The rising sun cast the silver and grey office interior with rosy hues, and the headmasters glasses briefly seemed to flash red in the reflected light. "Rough night, I take it?"

"Yes sir," I said shortly, not wanting to relieve the painful memory of the night before.

"Well, don't be a stranger. It's rather fortuitous actually. I was going to send a message for a meeting later today, but now will do just fine. Let me just shift a few things around..." Ozpin pulled out his scroll and began tapping away one handed, the other being used to hold his cup of coffee.

"I'm sorry sir, I didn't mean to disrupt your schedule." I apologized.

"Nonsense. It's a trivial thing," the headmaster reassured me, tucking his scroll away. "Though you will have to wait in my office for a few minutes."

 _Meeting? About what? And if we're going to do it now, why do I need to wait? Maybe he just has some work he needs to finish up._

I was a little confused at what it was that Ozpin meant, but forged ahead with my original purpose. "Professor Ozpin?"

"Hmm?"

"Actually I… well, I came to ask if you knew what my room number was. I didn't really pay attention and I forgot what room I was in, and I need to get back to it."

"Mhmm," hummed Ozpin into his cup of coffee. "Your room number is 281 B."

"Thank you sir."

"You're welcome," smiled the headmaster. "Now, it certainly would be more convenient if you committed that to memory rather than having to ask me every time."

"Yes sir," I nodded, bowing my head slightly in embarrassment.

"Very good. Now, I'm sure you're wondering as to the purpose of this meeting." The headmaster paused to allow me to nod my assent before continuing on. "As we have discussed before Glen, there are a number of people in this world that would want to get their hands on you for nefarious purposes. Our goal is to never let them become aware that you exist. It would not be wise, however, if we relied solely on that plan."

"Expect the best but prepare for the worst?" I asked, quoting a common turn of phrase.

"Precisely, Mister Foray. As such, I have taken the liberty of assigning a student to teach and mentor you in combat so you may defend yourself. We are simply waiting for her to arrive."

"Sweet."

"Feel free to take a seat." Ozpin gestured to the handful of chairs that adorned his office. Sinking down into his own ornate seat, the headmaster began shuffling through papers that cluttered the desk. I flopped down in a chair and twiddled my thumbs. My feet were freezing, courtesy of a lack of shoes, so I began humming various tunes under my breath to take my mind off it.

Scant minutes later, the elevator let out a soft ping and the doors clicked open. "Hey Professor Ozpin. You wanted to see me?"

 _Well, huh. Don't that beat all._

Yang Xiao-Long stood in the middle of the office, boasting a new wardrobe since I had seen her scant hours earlier. Added to the ensemble was a brown cutoff jacket that exposed her midriff, an orange infinity scarf, boots, and an odd half-skirt-half-belt deal that hung from her hips.

"Hey Yang," I waved from my seated position as she turned to see me.

"Oh! Hey there, short stack. I didn't expect to see you so soon," Yang smiled.

"I take it you two need no introduction?" Ozpin enquired, seeing our greeting. "Very well. Miss Xiao-Long, Glen has come to us after a recent Grimm attack on an outlying village left him without a home. He was staying in the city, but as I am sure you are aware he was at the center of a dust shop robbery that necessitated unlocking his aura. It is my hope that you will help him cultivate his combat abilities? You would receive a small stipend from the school for your trouble."

"Done," grinned the blonde. "I'd be more than happy to, Professor."

"Very good. Miss Xiao-Long, I ask you to train him up to as close to hunter standard as you can. You need not meet daily, but three or four times a week would be preferable. I leave you to determine the particulars."

And so it came to pass that Yang drew up a schedule and sent it to me. The first meeting was to be the day after our conference in Ozpin's office. Now that day had come and found me wanting.

"So, what time does this thing start?" Coco asked.

"Uhh… two o'clock," I replied, slipping my scroll out of my pocket to check the time. "Oh. It's one forty-five right now. I better head off."

Rising to my feet, I waved a dramatic farewell. "Say some nice words at my funeral, will you?"

"Do not worry," said Yatsuhashi. "You will not be killed. No student here would intentionally do such a thing."

"Big comfort from the big man," I said facetiously.

"You'll do great Glen. I know you will!" Velvet chipped in, softly cheering me on.

I looked to Fox, whose only response was to raise an eyebrow and then make a slitting motion across his throat.

"Yeah, got the memo," I chuckled. "How about you, Coco? Any words of wisdom to dispense on this poor peon?"

"You act like I'm not coming with you," said Coco as she sidled up next to me.

"You're coming with?"

"Of course! If you think I would miss an opportunity to see someone kick the shit out of you, you've obviously come back from the future," she teased.

"From the future?" I asked, not getting the joke.

"Yeah, the future where you suffered multiple head injuries at the hands of Xiao-Long."

"Whooo! You got me!" I shouted, going in for a high five. "You got me good, Coco!"

"Sarcastic ass," she grumbled. "Where are you headed?"

To answer that question, I had to once again consult the message in my scroll. "Uhh… Armory B?"

"The armory? Are you sure?" Coco enquired. "Not the arena?"

I just shrugged. "That's what it says. Armory B."

"Alright. I'll show you the way."

Coco set off at a brisk pace, forcing me to increase mine to keep up. The maze of hallways passed by in rapid succession as Coco led me confidently towards our destination.

"So, is it just me or did Velvet used to stammer a lot more than she does now?" It was something that had been bugging me for a little while now, and I had to get it out on the table. Coco just shrugged in response, wiggling a hand in uncertainty.

"Maybe. She doesn't really stammer around us. I think it's just a product of her being nervous. You were new and from another world entirely; the poor shy bunny had a hard time getting used to you." We walked down a flight of stairs, the rhythmic clunk of Coco's boots and soft thud of my sneakers echoing down the concrete walls. "But against all odds you turned out to be not entirely an asshole. You're actually decently likeable. That probably has helped her break out of that shell a little."

"Mmm. You flatter me."

"Don't let it go to your head," grunted Coco, keying in a code and shoving open a thick metal door.

The room I found myself in was very similar to an indoor gun range, with several lanes for shooting and targets positioned in each one. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all reinforced concrete, with metal glinting at the end of each range to stop the bullets with minimal damage. In the middle lane stood Yang, waving us over.

"Hey short stack! It's good to see ya. And Coco too!" smiley the blonde energetically. "So, here's the plan: I'm going to have you shoot some guns to assess your firearms proficiency before you get all beat up, and then we'll go a few rounds in the arena for hand to hand. Sound good?"

"Yeah. Sounds good to me." I was feeling a little more confident now, at least for the shooting aspect. Growing up in Texas for the majority of my life I had shot my fair share of weapons. Shotguns, rifles, handguns - I'd done plenty of variations of all three. Now was my opportunity to show off a little bit and hopefully knock Coco down a peg or two from her teasing about how I was going to be destroyed.

"Okay. The first gun I want you to shoot is set up here." I walked over to the station, admiring the weapon set out before me. "LA 338. Bolt action, fires a .338 round. The target is set at fifty meters. You need me to run down how to use it?"

"No, I think I've got it."

"Cool. Well, fire five rounds and we'll see how you're doing." Yang flashed me a thumbs up. "Good luck there, short stack."

I hefted the rifle, admiring its relatively lightweight and sleek design. _No, wait up there bud. Basic safety._

"Do you have some eye and ear protection for me?" I asked. Being around firearms long enough causes you to have a respect for the damage they can do, even if they are used properly. Expecting a little in the way of safety, all I got was a laugh from the gunner.

"Don't be a biiiitch, Glen!" shouted Coco.

"It's fine," sighed Yang, glancing back at the brunette. "Aura will prevent any damage, trust me. Now get to it."

"Alright." I was a little more nervous than before as I examined my weapon in preparation for shooting.

 _Bolt action. Nice and light. No scopes mounted; just the iron sights._ I lifted the bolt and slid it back smoothly, picking up a round and inserting it in the receiver. Pushing the round into place and locking down the bolt, I braced the rifle tightly against my left shoulder. _Okay. Normally I'd fire rifles like this from a seated position, the crook of my arm cradling the stock and the front resting on a sandbag or something for stability. This is more akin to what I do while skeet shooting. It'll be harder to be accurate, but I'll have to make do._

Staring down the sights, I aimed carefully at the far off target at the end of the range. The breath left my lungs gently as I exhaled, slowly pulling back on the trigger. Suddenly the gun went off with a sharp crack, followed almost instantly by a metallic clang from the far wall. I pulled back on the bolt and watched the shell casing get spit out and rattle onto the floor.

I repeated the process four more times with very few awkward moments. A good amount of experience allowing me to progress fluidly until my task had been completed. Checking that the rifle was safe, I set it down. "Done."

"Alright. Let's see where you stand," said Yang, pushing on a button that brought the paper target whirring back to the front of the lane so we could inspect it carefully. "Hmm… one clipping the center, full marks for that. One in ring nine high, one in ring nine lower right, and two in eight to the right. It's decent enough for shooting cold."

"Decent enough? It's like, a four inch grouping at fifty yards. That's pretty dang good," I protested.

"For a civilian, yeah. For a hunter it's mediocre at best, and that's not even considering the time it took to shoot those five rounds." She held an imaginary rifle in front of her and re-enacted the shooting, as if laying waste to any ego I had left. "You're probably jerking it just slightly to the right as you pull the trigger. We can fix that with practice, but I don't think you're going to become a sniper anytime soon."

 _Well, I guess I shouldn't have expected too much_ , I sighed internally. _I'm being held up to the standards of these demigods while I'm just a mere mortal._

"Alright. Gimme a second," said Yang as she took the rifle back to a storage locker.

 _I took too long? That was about thirty seconds or so. Six or seven seconds between shots. How is that not good?_

"How fast could a hunter do that? Fire all five shots from that rifle?" Coco rubbed her chin for a second as she considered my question.

"To be honest, those who don't use firearms very often wouldn't do any better than you. But a trained huntsman could probably halve your time with the same accuracy," she replied.

"Halve?" I frowned. "But that's only two or three seconds between shots. With a bolt action. That's… Well, that's ridiculous."

"But true," chipped in Yang as she returned.

"I don't really doubt it, but still… That's something you see in a movie. It's just crazy to me," I shrugged.

"Well, you have a chance to redeem yourself with a little semi-auto action. We'll be testing this bad boy out at ten meters range." Yang held up a sleek black pistol, similar in design to a Browning Hi-Power or any other member of the M1911 family. "It's got ten rounds in the clip right now-" At this Yang flicked the gun to drop the clip into her waiting hand.

"Don't point the gun at me," I blurted out, a hand reflexively jerking out to grab the weapon.

"Relax Glen," Yang said. "It's still pointed towards the back of the range. You are a ninety degree turn away."

"Sorry. You just made a sudden motion like you were going to turn it towards me - or I guess I perceived it as one and just panicked." I let out a weak chuckle. "I'm still a little jumpy from, uhh - you know - getting shot."

I could feel both of the women's eyes train themselves intensely on me, a look of sympathy and concern showing clearly on their faces. "Are you going to be okay to shoot it?" asked Yang concernedly. "You know you don't have to-"

I just waved a hand dismissively, trying to ignore the knot of anxiety dripping through my abdomen. "I'll be fine. It'll probably be good to desensitize myself to it anyway." Yang regarded me for a few more seconds, and then set the weapon and clip down.

"Okay. You know how to operate it, or you need me to show you?"

"I got it, thanks Yang."

"Okay." The blonde took a step back to allow me access. "Show me what you got then, short stack."

 _It's fine_ , I tried to convince myself as I picked up the weapon and slotted the magazine into place. _You've fired handguns before. This shouldn't be much different from the rifle._ No matter how I rationalized it though, it was different from the rifle. Not just physically; if only that were the sole issue. No, psychologically I still associated a handgun with my near-death experience; though the act of using one was far different than having the weapon pointed at you, my hands still shook slightly as I forced myself to follow through.

 _Blam blam blam blam blam_ \- the report of the handgun echoed around the range as I rapidly emptied the clip, setting down the weapon as quickly as I could. I had done it, but my anxiety had risen progressively with each shot until it was crushing my chest. Placing my hands behind my head I walked in a slow circle letting out an explosive sigh.

"You're sure you're okay Glen?" asked Coco, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"Yeah. Just need to release some stress, that's all." My anxiety was dropping away as I spoke now that I was removed from the pistol.

Yang collected the weapon to put back in its storage unit, exchanging a skeptical look with Coco that did not go entirely unnoticed by me. "Alright then. Let's see how you did." The sheet of paper was reeled in to reveal how poorly I had done. There were indeed ten holes in the paper, but they were spaced so erratically around the target that any four year old could have done better. It was a piss-poor showing. "Well, I was going to suggest maybe a handgun for close-quarters work, but I don't know if it'd help any," muttered Yang as she poked a finger through one of the holes.

"I can shoot a handgun. I usually do much better than this," I protested. "I just need to get used to it."

"You need practice is what you need," quipped Coco. "Not excuses." The fashionista probably didn't give much thought to the little poke at my ability. We had developed a routine of insulting each other and we both were so thick skinned that it usually didn't make a whit of difference. But in my current state I felt anger begin to burn in my gut and slowly seep higher.

 _Practice, hah. I can handle a pistol. I know I can._ Unfortunately, my prowess was not at all demonstrated by my recent performance. _But I have a legitimate excuse. They wouldn't understand,_ I thought bitterly. Some part of me recognized that I wasn't being reasonable. Coco meant no ill and it wasn't incredibly important at the moment.

 _Besides, it's better to recognize that I have an issue to overcome in order to get back to where I was rather than operate on what I think I can do. It's just getting to you because of whatever post-traumatic episodes you're having._ Despite making this recognition, the feelings didn't go away; it simply helped solidify my control over my actions.

"Yeah. I need to practice," I nodded with a thin smile as I shoved the anger away inside somewhere. "Anything else we need to do here?"

"No… I was going to run you through an SMG and assault rifle too just to see what suits you most, but I think we'll hold off on that for another day," said Yang. I bit back a protest, teeth digging into my lip as I looked away from the blonde's searching gaze.

"Okay. What next then?"

"Now?" In response Yang took up a boxing stance and shadowboxed the air for a second. "Now we get to fight." Instinctually I took a step back from her fists. There was a gleam in her eye that, while not malicious, certainly did not inspire confidence in my abilities. The posturing only continued for half a second more before Yang stopped and waved a friendly hand. "C'mon. I'll show you to the arena."

* * *

"So we're really going to go all out?" I asked hesitantly.

"Well, I won't," Yang said. "I want to keep your aura intact long enough to assess your ability."

Apparently the scrolls had the ability to monitor aura levels without the use of any other monitor, which was incredible to me. How on Remnant that happened without some kind of cuff or chip was a mystery, but I hadn't the time to learn right now. It had been a simple matter for Yang to flick through my scroll and connect it to hers, allowing her to then display both our aura levels on a screen from her scroll.

"What's wrong?" jeered Coco from the seats. "You look worried."

"I've never hit a girl before," I said.

"Well, you better try real hard if you even want a chance to touch me," grinned Yang.

"I'm not trying to make a disparaging comment on your ability," I explained, rolling my eyes at the innuendo. "I'm sure you're going to kick my butt. It's just-" I paused, struggling to convey what I was feeling. "It's just ingrained in me. I don't want to hurt you."

Yang raised an eyebrow and opened her mouth to comment, but I forestalled her with a further explanation. "Again, I really doubt I will hurt you at all. Genuinely I think you're far beyond my level. It's just a fear, reasonable or not. I don't like hurting friends."

"We're friends?" Yang put a hand over her heart. "How sweet of you."

"Stop stalling and fight already!" yelled Coco from the sidelines, cupping her hands around her mouth. Yang grinned and shifted her stance.

"You heard the lady. C'mon short stack. It's go time."

 _Okay. Let's get a feel for her style and ability first._

I fell back into a defensive stance, arms out in front of me and hands open. Yang moved in and began circling, forcing me to rotate to keep her in front of me. A right hand flashed in followed by a quick left hook. I deflected the former but with Yang pressing in close for the hook I had to move backwards to create space.

Seizing the opportunity of having me on the defensive, the blonde kept pressing forward faster and faster until I was in full retreat just to not be hit by the flurry of blows.

Instead of leaving her with the advantage, I chose to plant my feet and suddenly dive to the right. Rolling over my shoulder I came back to my feet ready to fight. Now Yang had to turn and meet me, neutralizing the initiative she had when I was backpedaling.

 _Okay Glen. It's intimidating, but you can't keep backing out. Move your head, move your body, strike and counterstrike. You're going to get hit, but keep the damage to a minimum._

As Yang finished turning I lashed out with a roundhouse kick from the left- her blind side. My shin buried itself in her side garnering a surprised grunt, but Yang reacted swiftly before I could kick off. I felt panic set in as her arm clasped my leg to her side, preventing escape while her hands found purchase.

I did my best to try and clench up and prevent what I knew was coming but Yang was much faster than I. Swinging me off balance, the brawler proceeded to unceremoniously lift me bodily off the ground and throw me across the arena.

My shoulder hit first as I skittered across the floor on my side until the arena wall stopped me abruptly.

"Nnggg," I groaned through gritted teeth as I stood. "That was a hard landing."

"Nice try," grinned Yang. "You actually landed something. But you'll have to do better than that if you want to take me out."

The aura meters above my head were a sobering sight. Yang still had ninety five percent of her aura remaining after that solid blow, whereas I had dropped to ninety two.

"Wait a moment." My hands came up to make a T, signaling for a time out. "So, does that mean that you hit me harder, or do I have less aura, or what?"

Yang shrugged. "It's hard to tell right now. You can't really judge the effectiveness of one blow against another. We can figure out your relative aura size later."

With that Yang launched back into the attack with a straight that I barely slid under. I returned the favor with my own flurry of punches, but managed to land none of them. She deflected and dodged all with such a fluid grace that soon I found myself overextended.

I threw up my hands to block a savage right, only to miss the follow-through kick that punished me for such an oversight.

My head snapped back as her foot caught me under the back of my jaw, lifting me bodily off the ground. All I saw was a brief flash of white before black overcame my vision, fuzzy red and blue spots dancing in them. As I hit the ground for the second time in as many minutes I was surprised at how quickly the hard grey floor swam back into view.

Crawling back to my feet I rubbed my neck gingerly. "Hell, I thought aura was supposed to protect me."

"Once again, it definitely has!" laughed Coco. "The fact that you can get right back up as opposed to being on the ground for half an hour is a testament to that!"

Seventy-one percent left. That single attack took… took… My mind sluggishly operated as I tried to do simple subtraction. Twenty … one percent of my aura.

"Hey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hit you so hard; I thought you'd get a hand up in time," Yang apologized.

"It's okay," I grimaced. "I think I just got my bell rung a little. I'll be fine."

"So, you ready to keep going?"

"Yeah. Sure," I grunted, raising my hands.

 _Okay. We've not only proven she's stronger than me, but she's clearly faster and much better trained._ I paused. _At least in punching and kicking. But what about grappling and fighting on the ground?_

It was my only option left at the moment. The only issue was bringing the fight to the ground. I doubt there's any way I'm going to get in close without taking a hit or two. That was not a thought I relished, but it was a necessity.

We began circling again, but this time I decided to take the initiative for the first time and rush in with a wild left overhand strike. Yang slipped it with ease - and I expected no less.

In fact, I planned on it.

The hand that had seemed recklessly thrown tightened around her back turning into an overhook. My right arm slipped under Yang's left, creating an underhook and securing the clench.

Quickly I jerked Yang forward to set her off balance, and then just as swiftly hooked her leg and drove the blonde down into the ground. I splayed out on top of her chest in side control preventing Yang from rising. Twisting my body I began jerking my knee up into her side like a piston. The second Yang began squirming and attempting to rise, I clamped back down until my purchase was secure enough to continue my bombardment.

"Get - off!" roared Yang, eyes seeming to flash briefly red. Wedging both hands under me and shoving with an inhuman strength, I was lifted into the air and tossed aside.

The blonde rolled over onto her hands and knees to climb back to her feet, only slowed by the recent beating her ribs had endured. Seizing the brief opportunity provided to me I pounced - right onto Yang's back.

My legs wrapped around her midsection, right foot locking behind my left knee in a triangle. Swiftly I wrapped my arms around her neck and locked in a choke hold. Yang stood with me clinging to her back like a deranged monkey, slamming me back into the arena wall.

I ignored the pain in favor of completing the hold, shoving my left arm forward to force her neck into the vice of my forearm and bicep. The blonde only had time to slam me once more before she succumbed to the lack of blood flow to her brain. Both hands scrabbled at my arm for a second before she slumped to the ground, dragging my back down the hardwood as I followed in suit. Releasing my hold I groaned, rubbing my back where it had been slammed against the low wall.

"Holy shit," came Coco's shocked exclamation from in the stands. "Holy fucking shit. I don't believe it."

Yang only stayed unconscious for five or six seconds before jerking back to life with a sudden gasp. "Welcome back," I said into her ear, from where my chin rested on her shoulder. "Mind getting off me so I can get up too?"

Yang slowly rolled to one knee, rising to her feet. "Oum, Glen. Where did you learn to do that?"

I shrugged and stood alongside her, lamenting the new ache in my lower back that wasn't there before. "Eh. It's just a bastardized version of judo and jiu jitsu that I picked up from some friends."

"If you don't want to tell me, don't," said Yang. "No need to make up words."

 _Whoops. Not from this world. Don't forget you can't accidentally reveal that._

"It's nothing."

"It's not nothing. You just knocked out one of the foremost up-and-coming huntresses in the kingdom of Vale!" hollered Coco, who was grinning like a loon. "What are the fucking odds. How do you like them apples, Xiao-Long?"

"If I knew he could do that I wouldn't have let him so close," Yang replied, eyes offering me a grudging respect. "I won't make that mistake twice." The brawler glanced up at the screen, revealing sixty eight percent aura left for me and seventy four for her. "Plenty left. What do you say we go a few more rounds, eh?"

"Why did you have to antagonize her?" I complained to Coco.

"Shut up and take your lumps," the fashionista shouted back. "You should have thought of that before you choked her out."

"What does she think this is, gang initiation?" I grumbled, earning a chuckle from Yang.

"No, but I still have more to learn about those tricks you have up your sleeves."

"Crap."

True to her word, Yang did not fall for any more of my takedowns or other tricks. She always danced out of range of anything I could try, while simultaneously keeping me at distance with a variety of kicks. Several rounds passed without me landing anything of significance and Yang finally called it quits with my aura hovering around thirteen percent and hers remaining solidly at seventy. It just served to show how helpless I was when she took me seriously and I fought on her terms.

Though it must be said, I don't think Yang was totally satisfied with her knowledge of how I fought. The stoppage might have been more a necessity after I literally walked into a particularly vicious jab.

"Dis is nise," I gurgled as blood dripped down the back of my throat. "I've dever had a bloody dose before."

"Well, first time for everything, right?" said Yang jokingly as I formed a crimson puddle on the floor.

"Yeah. I'be neber been this dizzy either. You'be rung my bell good." A bubbly sigh escaped me. "Is part of training me supposed to be beading me to a pulp?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to, I'm just used to fighting more competent opponents." Yang hesitated. "No offense or anything."

I fixed a baleful stare on her. "None taken. I'll remember dat the next timb I'm choking you out."

"There won't be a next time," Yang protested, arms crossed under her breasts. "On the plus side I think I know what we need to work on for now, so more of these all-out spars won't be necessary for a while at least."

"Happily noted," I nodded, only to have a spark of pain race up my stiff neck and into my skull. "Ow. Where's Coco and the first aid?"

"Right here," said the gunner from behind me. Coco handed me two tissues which I used to plug my nose, and then placed a cold pack on the back of his neck.

Ohhh yes. That feels so soothing right now.

"Hell, Yang. I hope you weren't planning on starting him with weapons anytime soon," Coco said with pursed lips. "Vel would never forgive me if I brought him home in pieces."

"Yeah. The first thing we're going to work on is aura control, no doubt about it. I think I knew he needed it but not how much," Yang agreed. "He's like a first-day student at a Signal prep-school."

"No, go on," I interrupted. "Keep making be feel bedder about myself."

"I think he's just a little grumpy after receiving such a beat-down!" crowed Coco.

"Well, id's cerdainly not improving my mood any," I retorted, turning my head slowly to look at the gunner. "Why do you take such sadistic pleasure id watching be get murdered?"

"Well, I do recall a certain someone being so adamant that he could defend himself because he beat up one White Fang grunt before getting the shit kicked out of him. Imagine then, if you will, that this young jackass had met someone competent and closer to the level of our friend Yang here. Now do you perhaps see why we were so worried?" Coco cocked her head, waiting for a response.

"Yeah," I muttered thickly.

"You could have very easily been killed."

"No, I… I get it."

I had got it a while back, but hadn't really understood it. Having Yang to compare against showed me how far I was from being the top dog I once thought I was. Sure I had scored one victory, but it was a pretty hollow one. Yang had clearly not been taking me totally seriously, and when she did so… I had not a chance in hell of beating her. If she had been a White Fang member intent on seeing me downed I would have been killed - or at the least critically injured.

 _Hah_ , I laughed dryly. _You think death wouldn't be so chilling considering the last month or so._

"Well, you're free to go," said Yang, rising from where she knelt next to me. "I'll give you a day to recover."

"Thanks," I said gratefully. "I deed it."

"Yeah. And we still have to see about you and my sister meeting. Maybe we could do that tomorrow?" enquired Yang.

"I thought the point was for her to see me better," I said, gesturing to my battered body.

"Stop bitching. You'll be fine by tomorrow. Did you forget how quickly your leg healed, idiot?" Coco reminded me in her typical gentle fashion.

"Fine! Fine. No need for the hostility. Just send be a message about whend and where, okay?"

Yang nodded, already on her way out. "Sure thing, short stack!" A little wave and a slam of the arena door saw Yang gone as I remained hunched over on the floor.

"Let's get you back to your room champ," said Coco.

I rose slowly, by body groaning in protest as I did so. My legs had certainly been bruised up and down from trying to check Yang's kicks. A hundred small miners seemed to have taken up residence in my neck and skull, and deep breaths were a labored endeavor thanks to the multiple shots my ribs and stomach had taken.

"I think I'm going to throw up," I moaned as I stumbled over to the short wall surrounding the arena for support as the world whirled around me.

"Fine," sighed Coco. "C'mere."

"Wha-"

Strong arms hooked under the backs of my knees and around my shoulders and lifted me up as Coco began carrying me bridal style up the stairs. "Something to say, champ?" she said, eyebrows creeping above her aviators.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm carrying you back to your dorm. What does it look like?"

"It looks like you're carrying me back to my dorm," I admitted. "Not that I'm protesting. I'm hurting far worse now than I have been after any other spar I've been a part of."

"I told you hunter spars are intense," grinned Coco.

"You weren't kidding."

"Yeah, and Xiao-Long was pulling most of her blows too."

"Okay. Now you're kidding." I said disbelievingly.

 _There's no way… no way, not with how battered I am. She was swinging more like Kimbo Slice than a teenage girl._

"No joke." said Coco. "I watched one of her fights and she launched a two hundred plus pound kid ten feet through the air before he even hit the ground. Best thing I've ever seen."

"Hmm." I simply let Coco carry me away, content to allow her to ease the burden walking surely would be given my present condition. There were a few other students in the halls who gave me some strange looks, but I could not have cared less. Finally, Coco kicked on a door to get the attention of whoever was inside.

"Hey! Open up!" she yelled, doing my headache no favors.

"Coco, there's no one else but me in my dorm," I whispered. "And please keep it down…"

"Oh, we're not at your dorm," smirked Coco. "We're back at my place again."

"But why-"

"If you think I would miss out on a chance to freak Velvet out, you're out of your mind." She hesitated, tilting her head. "Then again, with the kind of beating you received…"

"Coco, you - oh dear Oum, what happened to Glen?" squeaked Velvet in concern as she was greeted by the sight of me being carried by Coco, blood still crusted on the lower half of my face.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine. It just looks worse than it is." My best attempts at consoling the rabbit faunus proved next to useless as Coco was ushered in, dumping me on Velvet's bed. As the bunny bustled around gingerly tending to my wounds, I watched Coco and Fox laugh silently to themselves in the background as Yatsuhashi simply rolled his eyes.

 _Well,_ it may not be much, I smiled. _But damn does it feel good to have friends like these._

 **A/N: Well, here we are again. I enjoyed writing this one because of the fight scene, to be sure - something about that is very enjoyable. But what surprised me was the more mundane interpersonal reactions that were really nice to craft.**

 **Another thing that I wanted to explore was aura. So many times I see "I have aura, now I'm suddenly hunter-capable and all I need to do is brush up on the literal fighting skills." I don't think that's necessarily the case though. Aura needs to be learned and exercised like a muscle for maximum effectiveness. After all, didn't Pyrrha want to work on Aura with Jaune in one of their training scenes? Just something to explore…**

 **It's also worth mentioning that Glen's small victory is a complete one-off. It's a very unique fighting style compared to what Yang usually faces - but even so, if she had been taking it seriously, it never would have gotten that far. Glen would be - figuratively and literally - pulled to pieces.**

 **Anyway, thanks for reading. The likes, favorites, and reviews mean a ton and I'm blown away by how far this has gotten already. As always, constructive criticism is appreciated and I'll catch you guys on the other side!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Hey guy! I know I know, it's been a while. In my defense, there was the week I spent in Honduras without technology or internet, so not much I could do then. I also took a CLEP test to hopefully get out of some gen ed classes, so that took more time.**

 **Then there was a totally new story I dreamed up and wrote a chapter for,** _ **Raised by an Unkindness**_ **(shameless plug). Seriously, please check it out! I do plan on continuing it, but as a kind of secondary thing to this fic. So don't worry.**

 **Also, don't be fooled. The A/N at the end of this chapter adds about a thousand words on. Sorry for that fake news, but I will be answering some comments and questions! So check it out if you commented or just want to know more about how my mind works.**

 **Finally, if you want to know what I look like (for the purposes of this fic) I've uploaded a new profile pic. If you don't want to be turned to stone by my Medusa-like qualities, don't look.**

 **Anyway, enough excuses! Let's get into it.**

You know, taking a little bit of a battering isn't the worst thing that ever happened to a person. Particularly when after said bruising you have an adorable rabbit faunus to nurse you back to health out of the kindness of her heart.

Very romantic.

All jokes aside, I felt pretty awful after my spar with Yang. Nothing in particular hurt very badly, but it was just incessant soreness over my entire body. Raising my arms up above my head to grab a box of Pumpkin Pete's from its perch in the cafeteria was a painful struggle. My back ached from being slammed, my legs reminded me of all the kicks I'd checked - but the pain in my sides bore testament to all the ones I hadn't.

I sat down across from Coco and Fox and began picking at a bowl of fruit, rubbing some of the sleep out of my eyes.

"You look like crap," said Coco around a mouthful of scrambled eggs.

"Lovely to see you too," I muttered.

"You have bed head, there are dark circles under your eyes so deep you could lose a nevermore in them, and you need to shave," critiqued the fashionista as her eye roved over my disheveled form. "Nevermind that it looks like you slept in those clothes."

"I did." A piece of pineapple stung at a cut inside my mouth that I hadn't realized was there. I probed gingerly at it with my tongue, staring wearily back at the gunner.

Coco sighed and rubbed at her eyes. "Oum, as much work as you need with your fighting, you need with personal maintenance."

"I can do better, I just didn't feel like it right now," I defended myself. "I'll clean up before I go meet Yang's sister."

"You better. Don't want to scare her off."

"Surely I'm not so bad," I said as I popped a grape into my mouth.

"When's the last time you shaved?"

"Not, uhhh… not since I injured my leg."

"That's the better part of a month. You have a full beard, Glen. Well, except for the bit where it doesn't connect."

"Yeah, I know." There was a gap between the goatee and the mutton chops where the hair was still a clear peach fuzz, dividing the two areas like I had shaved it deliberately. I was confident it would grow in. I just wanted a full beard, man. Not even necessarily to keep - just to see how it looked.

 _Is there an ancient Greek god of facial hair? Because I might need to make a few sacrifices._

"You didn't even trim the neckbeard." Coco shuddered at the word, as if not being perfectly groomed was some kind of horrifying sin. To be fair, it probably was to her. She'd probably been up for at least an hour before she walked out in public.

 _I wonder if she sets an alarm just so her team doesn't see her before she's ready,_ I chuckled privately.

"It needs to go, Foray."

"I like it. It makes me look older."

" q the qqqq You look like you're thirty, Glen," Coco said bluntly.

I winced a little. "Well, I don't want that older."

"And not even a super attractive thirty. Like a thirty year old who lives in their mother's basement," she added callously.

"Geez, rub salt in the wound why don't you." I grumbled. "I don't care what you think. I look good."

"Are you that narcissistic?" Coco crossed her arms and quirked an eyebrow, waiting for me to deny it.

"Well, I've always said that the worst part about kissing a perfect ten is how cold the mirror felt on my lips."

There was a slight pause, and then Coco snorted with laughter, putting a desperate hand over her mouth to keep in a chunk of food. Fox had his shoulders shaking in a silent chuckle, his dull white eyes seeming to gleam with mirth.

The dark and silent warrior leaned over and reached out his hand for a fistbump. He then stood and took his tray towards the kitchens, sending a wink and a blown kiss back my direction.

 _I don't know that there's any understanding that man._

"You've never said that before in your life, have you," asked Coco as she regained control of herself.

I just shrugged, having finished my fruit. "Well, I didn't say it. But I thought it a funny enough thing to interject."

By this time my marshmallow cereal had already turned into a sugary sludge that I sipped at. _Holy cow. This stuff is putting me on the fast track to becoming pre-diabetic._ Another sip. _But it's so gooood._

"So are you going to shave and get cleaned up?" enquired the gunner.

"Well, now that you've made me feel so self-conscious I haven't been left much of a choice." Finishing off my cereal by upending the bowl and drinking, I wiped the resulting milk mustache off with an absent minded gesture.

 _Ow. Still sore._

"I thought you didn't care what my opinion was," grinned the fashionista, who was working on her third plate of eggs and bacon.

"I don't. I'm just not opposed to admitting when someone else might have a point."

"But what was that you said, something about being 'self-conscious'?" trailed off Coco.

I narrowed my eyes at her in mock irritation, only to have a self-satisfied smirk tossed back at me. Content with her verbal one-uppmanship, Coco pushed the plate aside and started on a bowl of oatmeal. "Okay, uhh… how are you putting away that much food? Not even I, who eats like a starved circus bear, can stomach that much."

She shrugged in response, toying with her spoon. "What can I say? I'm a growing girl."

"Yeah, growing sideways," I quipped under my breath, intentionally loud enough for Coco to hear.

 _Splat._

A chunk of oatmeal had soared in an arc across the table and hit me square in the forehead, the thick breakfast food sticking and slowly beginning to slide down my face. "Okay, was that entirely necessary?"

"What was that champ?" Coco asked, licking her spoon clean.

"Sore subject I see… I, uhhh…can you not?" Coco paused, tongue on metal.

"What? I'm just getting everything off the spoon."

I sighed, propping my head up with one hand. "It's been clean for a little while now, Adel."

"What?" she asked, doing it again. "It this too… sexual for you?"

"Vaguely, yes. It's a little uncomfortable."

"Not for me."

"Clearly." I rolled my eyes as Coco finally stopped.

"Well, I'll have to file that away for future use," she smirked, staring me down over the top of her aviators. "Uncomfortable with sexual displays-"

"Please no," I groaned, putting my head in both hands. "That's entirely unnecessary."

"I disagree," she chuckled, putting the spoon down. "All joking aside though, you are going to shave and get cleaned up. Right?"

"Yeah," I nodded, wiping most of the oatmeal off my face with a napkin. "Particularly as I don't want to wear your breakfast for that meeting."

"Speaking of wear, you are going to wear something nice, right? Something I'd approve of?"

"I don't know. Probably? Geez Coco, I'm just going to help out Yang's sister. It's not a job interview or a date," I said dismissively.

"There is always occasion to look your best." Coco retorted, leaning back and gesturing at what she was wearing.

"That's a school uniform."

"And I'm rocking it," she said, clasping both hands behind her head.

 _Yeah, I noticed. Christ she's gorgeous._

Not that I'd ever admit that to her. Well, in all honesty, I wouldn't mind complimenting her - I just didn't want to right now. Was it purely spiteful because I wasn't winning the war of words? Possibly. But that's not important.

"Fine. I'll do something." I conceded, not willing to drag it out any farther,

"Good. That's all I wanted to hear," she smiled, scooping up her plates of food. "I'll see you around, champ. I expect to hear good things."

"I won't disappoint," I smiled back as Coco stood and walked back towards the kitchen.

"Don't worry if you do. I'm used to it by now," she shot back.

I clasped a hand over my heart as if having received a mortal wound. "You hurt me so," I commented dryly. "Oh, hey Fox." The dark warrior nodded his greeting and held out a slice of toast with butter and jam. "Thanks man."

 _Mmmmm, strawberry. That's some good stuff - what the -_

"Coco, look out!" I yelled. Fox, immediately after handing me the slice of bread, lofted another like a frisbee directly towards the retreating form of the fashionista. Coco half turned and glanced over her shoulder only for the toast to strike her chest like a meteor. There was a look of horror on Coco's face as she propped her aviators on her head to take a better look at her shirt. Her white shirt. Her white shirt that now had a red smear on the front.

"Dude, you're an idiot," I said to Fox, trying to hold back laughter. "She's gonna kill you - where did he go." The blind man was nowhere to be found, seemingly having disappeared into thin air. "Well this ain't good."

"Foray!" roared a voice from my nightmares.

 _Well played my friend,_ I begrudgingly admitted. _Frame me with the second piece of toast. Well played indeed._

In the meantime however, Coco was stalking back towards me. I was innocent, and running would only make me look more guilty, but there was a gleam in Coco's eye that didn't seem particularly willing to let me explain. Her clenched fists weren't exactly inviting either.

Run now and explain later was looking pretty good.

I dashed away at a dead sprint, hitting full speed in just a couple of strides. Plenty of faces stared at me as I hurtled past, most likely wondering what was going on. "Excuse me! Coming through!"

In just a few seconds more I'd be busting out the double doors and into the morning sunlight where I'd find freedom.

Wouldn't that be nice?

Unfortunately reality struck me like a brick. It wasn't a literal brick; that would be absurd. It was a breakfast sausage. The force of the impact alone on the side of my head wasn't enough to knock me over, but it did send me stumbling a few steps sideways.

My intention had been to shoot the gap between a large burly teen in plate armor and a smaller guy with a mohawk, but it didn't end up working that way. Instead the sausage shoved me over before I had the time to form the words 'look out'. I barreled into the mohawked teen and sent him skittering across the floor like a loose bowling pin.

"Hey!" shouted the large student with a bird on his chestplate.

"Ahh crap! I'm sorry dude!" I said as I called over my shoulder, punching out into the sunlight.

 _How does anyone even throw a sausage that hard? And how overcooked was it?_

I shook my head if such thoughts and continued onwards at full sprint. 'What's the harm?' you might ask. 'You made it out.'

Ahh, but you see, that would be too simple.

"Come back here you jackass!"

Yep. My problems were now compounded by the large teen who was now giving chase after me. _Correction: Make that three._ Two of his posse had joined him in running after me, one with sandy hair and matching armor pieces and the second with long grey hair and armor to compliment. _Come on guys, it wasn't intentional. You're not helping your buddy by chasing me down._

Nevertheless, running away was something I was good at. Not that I had a ton of practice running from people, but I'd had plenty of practice with freerunning. _Their armor has to be slowing them down and wearing them out. Then again, apparently I'm not good at using my aura yet and they presumably are. It'd probably be unwise to hedge my bets on the armor keeping them behind me._

My feet pounded along the ground, the words of one of my football coaches ringing in my ears as I wrung every ounce of speed from my body.

' _Come on Foray! I want to see you dorsiflex! Are we going to have to go back to the A and B skip?'_

It felt good to run flat out though, I can't deny it. Adrenalin trickled around my body, the wind whistled by, and I was heading straight towards a twelve foot wall.

 _Easy money._

Stutter-stepping briefly to check my speed I ran into the wall and kicked upwards, flipping my momentum into the vertical. I vaulted over the top and landed on the other side, rolling over my shoulder and continuing on.

 _Beat that, you punks,_ I grinned to myself. As I threw open another door that led into the dormitories I turned and looked back. All I saw was the upper half of the biggest guy over top of the wall struggling to muscle up over it, his face bright red.

"You fuck!" he roared, pulling himself over top. "Come back here and fight you bitch!"

"Sorry dude! It was an accident, I swear. I was running from someone else and got knocked off balance." I tried to plead my case, but it didn't appear that he had any patience to listen to me.

"Bullshit," he grunted as he dropped down to the ground. "Come on, man up and fight somebody instead of a hit and run."

As the heads of his two compatriots appeared over the wall, I decided it would be best to skedaddle. "Sorry dude. Love to take you up on that offer. Maybe some other time!" Turning my back to his curses, I sped back into the school and up several flights of stairs.

 _Okay. Time to get cleaned up and meet Yang and her sis. And avoid Coco. And that other gang._ I sighed as I scanned my scroll to unlock my room. _Can't I just have a normal day?_

The answer was apparently not. A hand clapped down on my shoulder, grip tight as a vice. Now, you have to understand I thought it was the guy who had somehow managed to guess his way to the right floor and found me.

I feel like you've already guessed where this is going.

I grabbed the hand and forearm and began the process of a shoulder throw when my hands registered bracelets and cloth instead of a plate of armor like I expected. The wrist was also noticeably slimmer than the massive arms of the teen who was chasing me.

"Foray," came an all to familiar voice.

 _Ahh crap._

Halfway through the motion, my brain finally connected this thought into an action. I stopped the throw and reached around to catch Coco, or at least soften her fall.

Instead Coco turned her forward motion into a shoulder roll and then spun around to face me.

"Nice move." I breathed a sigh of relief that I hadn't slammed the fashionista into the ground. Unfortunately that sigh of relief was short lived. "Hurk," I choked as Coco lifted me up by the shirt and pushed me against the corridor wall.

Oh how the turns table.

"You see that?" she asked in a deceptively calm voice. I nodded my head as best as I could, looking down at the ruby red stain on her white shirt. "Do you know how hard it's going to be to get that out properly? And now I'm going to have to go back and get an entirely different outfit."

"I am terribly sorry for the inconvenience," I squeaked. "But I feel compelled to say I didn't throw the piece of toast."

Coco cocked her head in curiosity, brown eyes inches from mine. "Oh? Do tell."

"It was Fox. He gave me the second piece of toast and threw the first at you. I was framed." Coco opened her mouth, but I beat her to the punch. "Think about it though. How else would I have had the toast unless someone brought it to me? I didn't have toast for breakfast."

There was a long pause in which I wished I was on the ground. It wasn't particularly comfortable being supported by just the wall and my shirt.

"Okay," she finally said. "I can see it. Fox does love to mess with people, me in particular."

 _That's it?_ I thought a little incredulously. Still, I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

"Great," I wheezed, much relieved.

"Why did you run though?" Coco enquired thoughtfully.

"This," I replied, still dangling in the air. "This is what motivated my flight."

"Hmph," the fashionista grunted.

"Speaking of which, can I come down now?"

"Maybe," shrugged Coco, clearly relishing the moment. "If you ask very nicely."

"In your supreme generosity, oh queen, would you please grant this poor peon one simple request?" I begged, lacing false sencerity into every syllable.

"Mhmm," smiled Coco. "I like the sound of that. Do go on."

"I simply wish to be set upon mine own feet so as I might carry out the wishes of the queen, as she outlined earlier," I managed with some difficulty. Trust me, it's not the easiest task to come up with some Shakespearean monologue on the spot while dangling in the air.

Coco apeared to consider it for a second before responding. "Only if you say, 'My sincerest apologies Coco. You are the best.'" Another pause. "And you need to cook me something."

"I knew you liked the skewers," I said triumphantly.

"I'm waiting."

"Oh don't get your knickers in a twist. My sincerest apologies Coco. You're pretty great. I'll cook you something," I said sarcastically, though I at least intended on following through with the cooking. I mean, I'm not going to pass up an opportunity to show off my skills.

"Pretty great?" grimaced Coco, affronted. "I thought I asked for best."

"Will you accept top fifteen?" I bargained.

"Top fifteen? I said best," she shot back immediately.

"Hey, do you want me to lie to your face?" I asked playfully, bopping her on the nose. She glared back at me, eyebrows scrunched and eyes narrowed. "I'll have you know I've had some pretty awesome people in my life."

The gunner snorted in response. "How can I only be top fifteen? You don't even know fifteen people," she said derisively.

"I'll have you, I have… umm, I…" Trailing off, I sunk back into my thoughts.

 _Yeah. How many people do I know? Ten tops, probably a few less._

"Yeah," I finished weakly. "Well, I used to know a lot more people. I'll give you top five I guess."

"Shit, I'm sorry," she winced as she set me down gently.

"It's fine; I just miss them. You didn't mean to bring up anything." I waved off Coco, but she didn't look entirely convinced. We stood face to face for a few seconds in awkward silence, neither of us entirely sure what to say.

"Well, I'll leave you to get ready." She nodded slightly to herself as if in reassurance that those words were all that were needed, and then turned and stalked off.

"See ya." I walked back inside my room, shutting the door behind me. Mechanically I walked around the beds still loosely sprawled on the floor and moved into the bathroom.

My hands gripped the edge of the counter as the shower warmed up, the laminated surface cool and unyielding. Staring back at me from inside the mirror was a reflection of myself, but not like I was used to seeing.

As much as I hated to concede Coco's point I did look like I had aged ten years in a months time. The weight loss through surgery and the resulting recovery had helped my face and certainly my body. Both had defenition like I had never seen before, but I wasn't as excited as I might have been otherwise. If I was honest the beard was shaggy, and it was nice to be able to cover it with a layer of foam and begin to remove it.

It was my eyes that showed the most change though. They were creased, weary and had dark slashes underneath. They stared duly as I finished removing the remnants of my facial hair.

Though the sharp stabbing pain of loss had slowly depleted over the last month or so, there was an ever present ache in my heart.

There were moments when something shoved me close to the edge of cracking but those moments were growing fewer and farther between. Even Coco's accidental reminder hadn't done much more than bring on a wave of sadness and longing.

The dream of a few nights ago that had really hurt me was a rarity, but for some reason I wished that they occurred more often.

 _It just doesn't seem right,_ I reflected as I stood under the hot water of the shower, soaking it in. _How can I be moving on so soon? With how much I cared for them?_

 _I have a hope that I'll see them again. Almost a fanciful hope, really. Based on a dream._ A long sigh escaped me, morphing into a distorted chuckle by the end. _Based on a dream when I was still fresh into the grieving process and trying to process a new reality. Because we all know how realistic and prophetic dreams are. Hell, I've been having off-the-rails REM sleep pretty much since that time that I arrived in this world. Dreams are just the mind's way of processing events after all._

But despite all that told me logically my mother couldn't have communicated with me across worlds, through a dream no less, I clung desperately to the message like it was a lifeline. The belief had certainly helped me overcome a lot in a short time.

And I resented it for that.

 _Is it ironic?_ I wondered as I towelled off, humidity still hanging in the air and making it feel like I couldn't ever get completely dry. _Maybe it's just funny. Here I am trying to get over this and I just want to grieve more._

A quick check of my scroll jolted me out of my slow-motion reflection and into action. _Yang said to meet her and her sister before they had to head off to morning classes. Gotta blast._

In deference to the brown haired brown eyed fashion icon, who was equal parts friend, giver of unsolicited fashion advice, and Glorious and Wonderful Leader, I took a second to consider what I was going to wear. I settled on a plain white tee, slim blue jeans, and the same sneakers I wore for everything.

Hey, it was an effort. Besides, I didn't have a ton of options; I was already needing to do laundry and I hadn't been at Beacon long.

 _That means shopping. Better not get Coco involved or I'll probably stay there for hours and try on a hundred different outfits. And pay for it with all that money I don't have._ I groaned to myself as I shuffled out into the hall. Just another roadblock to overcome. Without parents and a job, I felt the need to gain some level of financial independence, even if it was for small purchases.

 _Again, shelve that for later._

I wound my ways through the halls of the dormitories and up several more flights of stairs until I arrived in front of what I believed to be the correct door. Raising my hand I knocked on the door, waiting for a moment until it was pulled open from the inside.

I had been expecting Yang Xiao-Long, and was sorely disappointed. In front of me stood a shorter, more petite girl with eyes like ice blue chips. She was pale, with white hair pulled back in an off- center ponytail. A fancy white skirt swirled angrily around her slender body as if she had arrived in a huff.

 _Ha,_ my mind joked. _She's whiter than I am._

"Yes?" she said, arms crossed. There was an arrogant look and feel to her that put me on the back foot immediately. It was as if I wasn't the better part of a foot taller but she was instead looking down on me from a pulpit.

"I think I have the wrong room number. I'm terribly sorry to have disturbed you," I said eloquently, hoping to defuse some of the girl's ire.

"Thank you."

With that the door shut quickly behind her and I was left alone in the hall once again. "Okay," I muttered. "That was a pretty frigid reception."

I examined my scroll and went up and down the hall, even taking the time to find one of the fire plan signs (a floor plan, essentially). Unfortunately, all that did was try and point me to the inescapable conclusion I had been in the right place.

Huh.

 _Maybe I should ask around a bit before I barge back and go straight back to the same room?_ I asked myself. _Yeah, let's do that. Information gathering and all._

 _Damn social phobias._

I went back to where I had stood before, though this time I knocked on the door opposite. Rocking back and forth on the balls of my feet, I waited and hoped someone would open the door.

My silent prayers were answered when the door swung open to reveal a tall, athletic woman with fiery red hair and emerald eyes. The best way I can describe her attire is as if someone took the armor off of a Greek god and fitted it for a fashion show.

Functional, but visually very appealing.

"Hey," I smiled sheepishly. "I'm looking for a, uhh, Yang Xiao-Long. Do you know where her room is?"

"Of course! Her team room is the one right across from ours," the amazonian woman replied helpfully.

"I thought so, but I got thrown off by a rather standoff-ish white girl," I said much relieved. "She barely let me get a word in before the door was shut in my face."

"That's Weiss Schnee," giggled the redhead. "But everyone calls her the Ice Queen. Not to her face however," she added hurriedly.

"Of course not," I chuckled along with her. "I can only pity the poor fool who thinks that's a good idea."

 _That armor does not cover half of what it should,_ I thought as my eyes bounced back up to hers. _But is that a bad thing?_

 _Stop it._

"Indeed," she laughed. "Is that all you needed help with?"

"Yeah. Thanks a lot for your help." I stuck out my hand to shake. "My name's Glen Foray. And yours is…?"

The readhead paused as she clasped my hand with a firm grip. She looked at me strangely, almost disbelievingly. "You don't know my name?"

"If I did, I wouldn't be asking," I joked. "No, I don't."

"It's Pyrrha," she said, a slow but genuine smile creeping onto her face. "Pyrrha Nikos."

"Lovely to meet you Pyrrha," I said. "And thanks again for the help. I hope I wasn't too much of a disturbance."

"Oh no! Not at all. I enjoyed meeting you too Glen."

"Alright then. Time for round two," I joked, making a show of cracking my neck and knuckles as I stared at Yang's dormitory door. Pyrrha giggled softly, hiding her smile behind a hand.

"Good luck," she smiled.

"I think I'll need it. See you around Pyrrha," I waved.

"My pleasure," the redhead replied. "I hope to see you soon."

Once again I found myself alone in the hallway, though under very different circumstances than scant minutes before.

 _Dear lord… if you hadn't told me this was a combat school, I would have guessed something to do with fashion or modelling. Between Coco on my case about clothing and every single girl being incredibly attractive… I don't even know._

Standing in the middle of the hallway wasn't solving anything, however. Armed with this new information, I marched back to the first room and knocked firmly.

 _What's behind door number one?_

"You again?"

 _Aaand it's a brand new pair of thumbscrews! Oh boy, it's this again._

"Hey, I am sorry to bother you,-" I started, but the pale girl threw up a hand in my face.

"Are you? This is now the second time you've interrupted us! We do have class to prepare for you know."

"And I apologize for my interruption," I continued on smoothly, taking the aggression in stride. "In an effort to not waste any more of your time, please allow me to skip to my point."

"Please do," she snarked, crossing her arms in front of her.

Forging onwards, I had to choke back the desire to laugh. _Is she real? I feel like I'm in a sitcom right now._

"I'm just looking for Yang Xiao-Long. I was supposed to meet her here this morning before class. Her and her sister, I believe."

"Hye Glen!" called out a cheery voice, Yang's head appearing over top of Weiss. "How're you doing short stack?"

"Yang!" growled Weiss. "You're supposed to be studying for Oobleck's exam!"

"I have, Weiss! I was prepared days ago for that test. Contrary to what you seem to think, I am not an airhead," said Yang in frustration, crossing her arms beneath her breasts as she stared down the shorter girl.

"I never insinuated such a thing," the girl replied haughtily. "But as the leader of team Sabre it is my duty to ensure that you are meeting the highest standards in your education."

"And what about Blake?" asked Yang. "Why does she get to run off while we're stuck here studying?"

"Blake is studying on her own in the library," Weiss said assuredly.

"Studying?"

"Yes, studying," snapped the ice queen.

"Did you see the book that she was carrying? Because it wasn't a textbook," said Yang, a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips. "You want to know the title?"

"Enlighten me."

"Ninjas of Love," pronounced the blonde with satisfaction.

Weiss's face had been growing steadily redder throughout the conversation until it seemed she would either color match the inside of her jacket or explode. "I'm going to check on Belladonna," growled the girl. "You two better not be getting off track while I'm gone."

"Of course not," said Yang innocently, batting her eyelids. "Who do you think I am?"

Weiss narrowed her eyes as she stalked off down the hall, not dignifying her with a response.

"It was nice to meet you," I waved as she turned the corner in a huff. Yang just shook her head and chuckled, leaning against the door frame.

"Sorry about that. Want to come in?"

"Trouble in paradise?" I asked, taking her offer and entering the dorm room. It was situated much like mine when I had first come in, with beds, shelves, and other furniture laid out with military precision.

Yang sighed, brushing aside some of her long golden hair. "That assumes there was ever paradise. You're luck to be hanging with team Coffee. They're a pretty tight bunch."

"I'm guessing you guys haven't clicked yet?" I asked.

"Right," snorted Yang. "Not yet. Our great leader, Weiss, never lets us just hang out and chill. She's worse than a slave driver. Ruby works as hard as she can-" Here Yang gestured to a figure that was bent over a desk, facing away from us. "-but it's never enough for Weiss. She gets frustrated and discouraged because of that, which is the hardest thing for me to see. Blake just goes off and does her own thing and avoids everyone, so I can't look to her to help."

Yang sighed again deeply, before her more traditional smile popped back onto her face. "We'll pull through and it'll get sorted out. Sorry for dropping that on you."

I felt a little guilty for laughing internally at Weiss earlier. Not for fear of hurting the ice queen's feelings, but because it was obviously wearing on Yang to deal with it day in and out. "Hey, no problem. If there's anything I can do to help out just let me know."

"You're already going to help plenty by getting Ruby out of this funk," smiled Yang, waving aside my offer.

"So Ruby's your sister?" I asked, looking back at the figure who was still hard at work studying a book closely.

"Yeah," Yang nodded.

Ruby had short-cropped black hair with the tips dyed red and a red cape, though I could see little else from where she sat back turned. She had on a pair of large red earphones that I presumed were keeping us from disturbing her.

"So her funk is… what? Just trying to figure out what I need to do beforehand since we have an chance here."

"Well," started Yang, playing with her hair. "She was a lot more subdued when she learned that you had been seriously injured. She's kind of bounced back from that since then, but it's kind of manifested itself in that she doubts her decision making."

"Doubts it?" I asked quizzically.

"She just second guesses if she's making the right decision. I suppose that's a better way of putting it," shrugged Yang.

"And that's because I got shot?" I squinted a little, running my mind as I tried to make the connection. "Why's that? She wasn't - I don't see why that would be a hit to her confidence."

"It's like - I think - how do I explain it," frowned Yang, looking back at her sister who was oblivious to the two behind her. "You've ever heard of survivor's guilt?"

"I think I'm familiar with it, yeah," I nodded. "But that's still not-"

"It's not exactly that," Yang interrupted with a wave of her hand. "Just similar. She thinks she could have… you know… made different decisions. Gotten there sooner, done something, and you wouldn't have had to get hurt. She's pretty idealistic."

"Yeah," I murmured, running a hand through my hair. "But that's not her fault regardless. Haven't you explained that?"

"Of course," said Yang. "I've told her only a hundred times, and I know she hears me and understands what I'm saying. She just hasn't…"

"Internalized it?" I finished.

"Yeah. It hasn't sunk in yet."

"And little old me is supposed to change that?" I joked, but I began to feel a little more weight to the task that was set before me.

"Well, I'm hoping so. I mean, maybe if she hears it from you and sees you're not upset it'll help. I don't know. Can you blame me for trying?" Yang said, eyes piercing into my heart. "It's hard to see my little sister set back like that, especially since she was socially awkward to begin with."

 _Yeah. I'd do anything to help my sister,_ I thought heavily, a weight settling in my gut that seemed to connect me with the blond despite how short a time we had known each other. _Both older siblings that care for the younger._

"Yeah. No, I get it. I'll do my best, I promise that. I just hope I can help."

Yang sent me a genuine smile that lifted my spirits. "Alright short stack. I'll get her up."

"Hey Ruby." Yang frowned as she got no reaction. "Ruby!" she called a little louder, but still the girl didn't respond. Marching over Yang shook her shoulder, only to be met with a slight twitch and a light snore.

"Oh," I chuckled, mentally facepalming. "I see now."

"What's so funny?"

"I thought she was studying the book real closely," I laughed. "But that makes a lot more sense."

"Ruby! C'mon, it's time to get up." Yang shook the shoulders of her sister until she woke with a start.

"I'm awake!" she cried out, pulling the earphones off in a hurry. "I was studying and I must have just dozed off and-"

"Shhh," shushed Yang, clamping a hand over her mouth. "It's fine. I'm not Weiss. I do have someone for you to meet though." Ruby made eye contact with me and then glanced back at Yang confusedly. Then, a light of realization seemed to click on and she jumped to her feet and flew over to me in the blink of an eye.

 _Woah. She's fast._

"Nice to finally meet you," I smiled, shaking her hand. "I'm Glen."

 _Holy cow she's adorable,_ I thought as silver eyes looked up into mine from a far lower vantage point. _And she's so small. My hand practically swallows hers._

"Hi! My name's Ruby Rose. It's nice to meet you too," she pronounced in a high pitched voice.

"I hear you helped chase down Roman Torchwick with Fox and Yatsuhashi," I smiled. "That's pretty impressive."

"Yeah I did!" she said excitedly. "They were really awesome! Torchwick tried to escape up a building but I cut him off before he could get there! Then he shot at me with his cane and I had to use Crescent Rose to get out of the way but I lost track of him. Then Fox and Yatsa - Yatsu-"

"Yatsuhashi?"

"Yeah! Sorry, I can never remember his name," she laughed awkwardly. "Then they showed up and chased Torchwick and then a bunch of these thugs came down and we fought through them but a Bullhead appeared and Torchwick got on it and he got away, but it was amazing! That was the first time I really got to fight against bad guys and not just the Grimm."

I couldn't help but grin in response to her infectious attitude, as she bounced around in the retelling of her story.

"And then I got to meet a whole hunter team which was awesome, and I was admitted to Beacon, but then I found out - I mean, I knew you were hurt, but I didn't know how badly, and I…" Ruby's enthusiasm seemed to deflate like a leaky balloon as she approached the end of her sentence.

"Well, I got hurt," I nodded. "But I'm just fine now. Better than ever, in fact."

"But it doesn't change that it happened. And if I hadn't spent so much time getting there, or if I knew where to go better so the power outage didn't throw me off, or if I left earlier like I had wanted too-"

"What would have changed?" I asked gently, cutting her off.

"I- I might have been able to help you!You might not have had to get hurt." The next words were murmured more softly. "The heros never let innocent people get hurt."

I took a second to carefully craft what I wanted to say, rubbing my chin. "Hey Ruby, I'm going to make two arguments if I can. Is that okay?"

Ruby shrugged a little listlessly. "Sure."

"First off, did you know that this would happen?"

"No. But-"

"Any information that might have led you to suspect it?" I jutted in.

"Well, No but-"

"No. You didn't know it would happen," I repeated. "So there is absolutely no fault on you. Would you blame the police for not stopping a robbery they didn't know was being committed?"

"No, but-"

"Or would you blame a doctor," I continued, "For not catching a kid that fell out of a tree when he wasn't around to see it?"

"No," responded Ruby, quirking her head.

"But would you fault the police if they didn't investigate that robbery, or if the doctor didn't splint the boy's arm?"

"Yeah, well, probably. That's their job," Ruby replied, much to my delight.

"Of course. Just like those situations, you didn't know it was happening so you can't be faulted for not arriving at the right time. But you did what you could as soon as you knew about it, and chased after the ones responsible. Kind of how the doctor might splint up an arm after the fact, or the police might track down the robber. You see what I'm saying?"

"Yeah. I suppose so," Ruby nodded unconvincingly. "But I still think that I could have done better. Done something different."

I nodded. I hadn't expected an immediate shift in her thinking, but I had wished it would happen. "Don't worry. Just… think about it would you?" I asked, getting an affirmative head movement. "You know, a lot of times it's easy to see things from the outside but hard to deal with it when it involves you. So just think on it."

"Okay."

"The other thing is that the situation that I was in probably wouldn't have been helped by having another hunter around. I mean, you know Coco and the rest were all there already. If four second year students couldn't change the outcome, what chance did you have?" I hesitated, hoping that I wasn't going to be taken the wrong way. "Not to minimize your abilities or skills. You see what I'm driving at?"

"No it's okay. I see what your saying." Ruby didn't look quite as uncertain as she had the last time, so I hoped some of what I had said was sinking in or making sense. I still felt some lingering doubt, but I wasn't quite sure what to say without repeating myself.

 _What could I say? What could-_

"It might have been a blessing," I said softly. "Maybe Torchwick would have felt more pressured and shot me sooner. I might have died." I shook my head. "Not to be morbid. But all's well that ends well. I'm here, I'm healthy, and there's no reason to keep beating yourself up over it."

"Okay." Ruby spoke quietly, as if she didn't dare believe it but was moving in that direction.

 _Settle down Glen. You're not a miracle worker. You can't expect a full breakthrough in the course of a five minute conversation._ I did think it would be a mistake to keep hitting her out of the head over the issue though, so I moved on to lighter topics. _But what? What to ask about?_ The silenced stretched out just long enough to be awkward when I saw Yang trying to silently get my attention.

 _Weapon,_ Yang mouthed in the background. _Ask about her weapon._

"Umm… what kind of weapon do you use?" I asked hesitantly, not sure if I had been reading Yang's lips correctly. At any rate it seemed a reasonable question for a student at a combat school.

"Oh! I have only the best weapon in the whole world!" Whatever I had just done, it seemed to have lit a fire in Ruby that immediately dispelled - as Yang so eloquently put it - her funk. "Her name is Crescent Rose! You want to see her?"

"Do I?" I said, deliberately drawing it out as Ruby vibrated with anticipation.. "Of course," I chuckled when I thought I had drawn it out just long enough. "C'mon then. Show it to me!"

Within a fraction of a second a red and black mass had been whipped out from under a pillow and expanded into a huge weapon that seemed far too large for the girl wielding it. It was a massive red futuristic scythe with a wicked red and black pattern to compliment.

"Jesus Christ." I jumped a little as the weapon was unfurled to Yang's amusement. "You can use that in combat?"

"Yep!" agreed the girl, popping the 'p' at the end.

"That's a… scythe, right?"

"Yep!" said Ruby once more. "Aaannd…" She pulled back a charging handle, causing a large bullet to be thrown out of the ejection port. "It's also a gun!"

"Holy hell," I muttered in awe as I was tossed the heavy round. "What is this, a fifty BMG or something like that? It's massive! How do you manage the recoil?"

"I've incorporated it into my fighting style," Ruby said as if it was no big deal. "The recoil helps propel me."

"Wow." I couldn't help look at the girl in front of me in a different light. Slight, small, and young she might have been, but if she could use this weapon to any sort of effect… I could only imagine the devastation that would be wreaked by the massive bullets and long razor cutting edge. "That's really something. That's really something."

"Thanks!" she said, glowing under the praise of her weapon. "I forged it myself."

"You made this?" I asked, hand on forehead.

"Yup! All students at Signal learn to make their own weapons."

"I… holy cow, Ruby. That's genuinely incredible to me. And you're how old?"

"Fifteen," she admitted. "But it won't be too long until I'm sixteen!"

"Only six months, Rubes," cut in Yang from behind her.

"Yaaaang," whined Ruby only to get laughter from us both.

"That's incredible Ruby. It's really something to be proud of. I wish I had that talent."

"Well, what kind of weapon do you have?" Ruby asked inquisitively.

"Just these guns," I grunted, pulling off a variety of bodybuilder poses while Yang groaned loudly and Ruby put her face in her hands. "Nah, not really. Nothing to compare with that monster.

"Ooh! Do you think that I could help you build your own? Oh, that would be awesome! You'll have to tell me all about your fighting style and what you want and then we'll work on it together and it'll be great!" Ruby bubbled without waiting for me to affirm her wish. "Then you can help with the missions of team S-Y-B-R!"

"S-Y-B-R?" I asked, confused.

"Sabre. We're team Sabre," Yang explained. "It's an acronym that uses the first letter of our names. S for Schnee, Y for me, B for Blake or Belladonna, take your pick, and R for Ruby."

"That's pretty cool," I nodded. "So that goes for all the teams in Beacon?"

"Yup," nodded Ruby.

"Well then," I frowned as my mind played letter sudoku at a frantic pace. "How the hell do you spell team Coffee?"

 **A/N: Hey guys! Finally back with a little more. And now we can see the butterfly effect finally starting to rear its head in a little way… hopefully it's now apparent to those that were asking that it's not going to be a shot for shot remake with some Glen insanity to throw in.**

 **I have so many fantastic plans for Glen's weapon. Ohhhhh boy, so many good ideas. No spoilers though!**

 **Though, bribery and begging never hurt. I am excitable and semi-impatient after all.**

 **Anyway, I absolutely loved some of the comments and critiques that came out last chapter. I don't know what it was that inspired - oh yeah, the fight scene. I thought them worthy to answer in the A?N because they were pretty good, so here goes.**

 **somas35: I appreciate you taking the time and thinking it through! I do my best to have a fairly solid reason for everything I do, and if you read on a little I'll explain my reasoning. And Yang did show self-control. I feel that 'raging tantrum' is really only a product of her getting really angered and/or injured. Here she wasn't really either, and she also knew Glen was certainly not hunter standard and toned it down accordingly. I really appreciate it man!**

 **edgolub2: Well… we all have to make sacrifices. And Glen is combat capable for a civilian, but not a hunter. I mean, have you watched the series XD? They're demigods. Glen will gain a lot of skill, don't worry, and he will be able to kick some ass in the near future (even if it's only White Fang). I did include that little grappling scene partially to hold people over with a small victory. I mean, I do sometimes slightly compromise realism for the sake of storytelling. It's a balancing act that's heavier on the realistic side but I do my best.**

 **That does bring me to your second complaint. Seeing Glen beat Yang a little bit wasn't real. Where's my emphasis on realism, right? Well, as I said before, part of it was a tide-over for readers where Glen isn't just getting beaten to a pulp. I did think about it though. First off, even though hunters do train against themselves to combat other hunters and probably aid the police in some capacity, their primary objective is not people. It's the grimm. Most of the fighting styles and weapons are tailored as such. In fact, unless my memory deceives me (and feel free to correct me if I'm not), Yang is the only one on the hunter side who uses martial arts as her primary weapon. The others in general are not truly hunters- Mercury (trained as an assassin - to take down people), Cinder (again, working to take out people), and Neo (Assassin/Mercenary). As such, unlike those three, Yang is learning mostly to take on the Grimm, not people.**

 **Now, I believe all martial arts on this planet are to take out a human opponent exclusively. As such, Glen has been trained against** _ **human**_ **opponents exclusively, even though his training has been much less. A difference. And two of those martial arts are judo and jiu jitsu, the two he used in combo to take down Yang.**

 **In my mind at least, these two martial arts would be fairly foreign to a hunter. After all, they don't serve a purpose to fighting grimm. You're not going to shoulder-throw an ursa, nor would you get into a wrestling match with one and try to put it in an arm bar. And I'm certainly not saying Yang has no knowledge of grappling, but the grappling I learned when I did Karate and boxing (the closest I get to Yang's boxing/kickboxing combo) the grappling I learned was practically nonexistent.**

 **An example, if I may. I learned all of my judo/jiu jitu from a friend who is a black belt in both over two years or so, as I've (or Glen) has said. For perspective, I am 185 pounds, about six feet tall, solidly built, play contact sports, and do powerlifting. He is 135, five foot nine, and runs track and cross country.**

 **Physically thats a big difference. I'm three inches taller, fifty pounds heavier, and a lot stronger than he is.**

 **But I can't beat him. Now that I'm pretty good I can stalemate him for a while, but even then I rely on brute force muscling my way out of some bad situations. But as soon as I make enough of a mistake and I get into a situation I don't know how to escape I'm done.**

 **Now again, I'm by no means a master of the art. But I do think that Yang does not have enough skill or experience to fight off such an assault by skill alone. Just like me versus my friend, once you're in a bad situation, you can't really escape.**

 **Finally, however, the takedown and choke out sequence would never have taken place without Yang allowing Glen in close. This is one step below even a spar for her - it's a way for her to assess his abilities. She is not going all out by any means, but just seeing what he is capable of.**

 **As such, if she were going all out, she would never let Glen in, as is evidenced by the rest of the spar where Glen gets served. In a real fight, as it stands currently, Glen would hold on to be a first round KO. Donski.**

 **As much as I've argued against you though, I do appreciate the points you've raised. Keep me honest, keep me on your toes. And your line - trying to make fantasy into realisim - I do have to admit. You're probably right. I don't deny it is a fantastic challenge. And though I may have to warp things one way or another, it is a fantastic test of how far I can stretch myself. So I'm going to keep at it.**

 **As for realistic action and human behavior … I thought I was doing so good :(**

 **Then again I'm a very fallible 18 year old. I'm doing my darndest though, I tell you what. At the very least my/Glen's interactions with others are as real as I can. Ahh well.**

 **If you're reading this, well, I appreciate you hanging around XD Stay critical my friend.**

 **Kestes: You've been around since the beginning, haven't you? I always appreciate those little short notes of affirmation my friend. Thank you :)**

 **Mouse the Annon: Okay, you got me. Genuinely a good point. In this case my desire to be specific kind of (pun intended) shot me in the foot. Leaving it a bit more up to the imagination would probably have been better. Though they might well have a .338 caliber dust round, it probably would have been better to leave it at a bolt action or some such. The pistol I believe I only likened to an 1911, not that it was of the actual family. Hopefully that makes it a bit easier to swallow :)**

 **Good call though, and thanks for the read and review :)**

 **Rimmer Dall: I see ht you're saying, but those are semi-automatic rifles. (At least Pyrrah's is for sure. What even is Ruby's? I've seen it fire bolt and semi, I'm pretty sure.) I'm firing a pure bolt, and I'm not getting fed from a clip where I can just slam the next round home. I'm opening the bolt, picking up the next round, feeding it in, and closing the breech. I did the motions with my hands as fast as I could on an air rifle without worrying about accuracy, and it's still far longer than just slamming the trigger back on a semi. Hope that helps :)**

 **RadioPoisoning: Ohhhhhh, I want to tell you! I want to tell you so bad. I have plans for his weapon. *manaic laughter. But I won't teeeellllllll…. At least not yet :)**

 **EWR115: Yeah baby. Houston is my city.**

 **Sparkysbro: Thanks for seeing the opportunities grappling opens up, as I've outlined above! It's certainly something I plan to make use of :)**

 **Thanks for the read and review.**

 **Tim: Oh, Tim. For whatever reason reading that made me laugh. I appreciate it brother :)**

 **If I didn't answer your question, don't be offended. I read them all and appreciate each one. I just want to answer the main themes of a lot of them and then throw in a couple short ones because I am strapped for time right now. I wanted to get this chaper out a lot earlier…**

 **Anyway, I appreciate all the reads and reviews! Love you guys, and see you on the flip side!**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: What? HarpLeaf actually putting out another update within two weeks? Unbelievable, impossible, and practically unheard of! It's just a prank bro! It's just a social experiment!**

 **Well, it's true and it's here. Anyway, I just tried to loosen up in this chapter, have a little fun. Hopefully my little experiment pays off, but I enjoyed it anyway.**

Once again, I found myself alone with the blonde. "Oh please Yang," I begged. "We're not going to do this again, are we?"

"Well, you do want to be able to last more than a couple seconds, don't you?"

"Yes." Just because she was right didn't mean I had to like it.

"Then you need practice," she smiled.

"Yeah…" I admitted.

"But?" Yang prompted, sensing my hesitancy.

"It's just the last time we went at it so long I was unbelievably sore the next day," I complained.

"You know, most people would be grateful to have this opportunity," Yang berated me.

"I am not most people," I said in mock offence.

"Fine," she sighed, brushing her hair back. "I won't ride you so hard."

"No more yelling at me to go for a few more times?" I asked cautiously.

"I promise," Yang nodded, making an X over her heart.

"Okay then," I said, finally acquiescing to her demands. "In that case, I'll give my consent."

I raised my hands to shoulder height, and prepared myself for the inevitable onslaught. It was like being the instructor who held out his hands for the student to throw combos at but without the helpful padding. But instead, I was left to absorb Yang's blows with my bare hands because padding would defeat the purpose of the exercise.

"Focus Glen. You've got to force your aura into a protective shield." Yang instructed me before the session began.

"Yeah. I'm doing my darndest," I frowned.

"Don't get frustrated short stack. You're only three days into aura manipulation. If it's any consolation, once you have the breakthrough it'll be a lot easier to progress. Hey, it took me a bit less than a week to get my aura to start doing what I wanted." Yang's attempt at encouragement fell a little flat. I rolled my eyes and shook my head as I summoned up some sarcasm.

"Hooray. I'm halfway there. When I'm able to protect myself properly with aura I'll guard the stumps of the hands I no longer have."

"Are you going to keep whining?"

"No," I sighed. "By all means, let's do this."

It was now only my fifth day of training with Yang, and I already was dreading our little get-togethers. The first two days had just been workout related - maxing on lifts, doing a two mile run, all things like that to generate a baseline. That wasn't the problem; I was plenty used to hard workouts. No, the problem came when we started working with aura.

Let me explain it this way. If I was to teach someone how to throw a football, I'd say something along the lines of, "Put your hand on the back here, fingers on the laces like this, make and 'L' with your arm, rotate your torso, follow through to your target, snap the wrist over and let it roll off your fingers for spin." There are specific steps to throwing a football I could give and I could even demonstrate.

Aura was exactly nothing like that at all.

The aura explanation was, 'you've got to feel it out', 'will the aura into a shield', 'envision it as a barrier'. What? Feel what? Do what?

'Use the force, Luke.' That's about the best Yang could give me.

 _Thanks a bunch Obi-Wan. I'm over here beating my head against a brick wall._

"Nope," I grunted as another punch hit my palm without any extra cushioning. "That wasn't it." I shook out the hand as if the motion would dispel the sting of the last blow.

 _Concentrate. Damn it, something needs to work._

I willed and strained to force something into my left hand until it felt like I was shoving back an invisible wall. "Okay."

 _Smack._

"Not at all," I said as my aura failed to cushion the blow like Yang said it would. "Let's try that one more time."

And so it went on for the next hour. Yang was pulling her punches significantly and for that I was grateful. Individually though they weren't particularly strong the sum total of all the blows was quite painful.

"Okay," I managed through gritted teeth. "I'm going to call it right now."

"You're done?" Yang asked.

"Yeah. I've hung around and I think I've had all that I can stand without descending into masochism," I joked.

"Are you doing okay?" Worried lilac eyes met my own. "You know you can call a stop any time."

I nodded, relieving Yang of any concern she had.

"And I just did." I experimented with raising my arms above my head and splaying my hands, only to stop as I felt how sore they had become. "Yeah, just sore and bruised up is all."

"Well, if you're only sore, then how about we go for a few more?"

"No Yang." I thought I had made it clear, but apparently the message didn't take.

"Surely you're not more sore than after a hard workout," she countered. "And you're perfectly fine to keep working then."

"Yeah, but I know that I'm actually getting somewhere with my workouts. This just feels like a bunch of sadistic smoke and mirrors." I took a swig from a water bottle and sat down on a bench, sighing in relief at being able to take the weight off my feet.

"You will get there though. Like I said, you just have to get over the hump and then you'll be able to really track your progression." Yang came and sat next to me, patting my back as I rested bent forward with hands on knees. "We've just got to get you to that point."

"Is the punching and pain really necessary though?" I asked, hoping the answer would be no.

"Well, no, not really," Yang admitted much to my delight.

I latched onto that immediately, pushing for this increasingly painful form of training to draw to a close. "Okay! So we can do something else."

"Yeeeesssss," said Yang, sucking on her lower lip in a way that told me I wouldn't particularly like the answer. "But it's indefinitely longer."

"How indefinitely?"

"It goes from about a week for this method to something like two months or so. On average anyway, if I'm remembering correctly." Yang shrugged. "At any rate, I don't know how to work the other method. But I mean, if you thought you were going nowhere fast now, it'd be a lot worse the other way. It's pretty much meditation and crap."

I just groaned and splayed out on the bench, covering my eyes with a free hand. "Can you explain why it works so much faster this way?"

"Will it help?" Yang enquired, tapping out a rhythm on her knee.

I cracked open my fingers slightly to look up into her eyes. "Maybe. I just like having an understanding of things and why they work. I have an inquisitive mind that way."

"Okay. Sooo… it works kind of like this. Your body is experiencing pain and impact for an extended period of time pretty consistently," Yang began.

"Yep. I realized."

Yang paused just long enough to deliver a deadpan stare. "Do you want me to finish this?"

"Sorry about that. I don't know where it came from." At this Yang rolled her eyes so hard if she hadn't had aura I was sure she would have been blinded. "Please continue," I motioned. "At least after we've given your retinas a moment to reattach."

"Smartass." She fought down a smile and continued. "So your body is under duress for an extended period of time, so it's forced to adapt to deal with it. So it begins to use aura to protect you from that."

 _So, it's like a more immediate defense rather than a gradual buildup of a callus or a reduction in the amount of pain receptors in the area,_ I theorized. _And the difference is like … like … going to a french immersion school to learn the language rather than taking a class. Harder at first, but you learn it a lot faster._

"Is that good enough for you, short stack?"

I nodded, swiveling around and up back into a sitting position. "Yeah. The stress forces a different use of aura. It kinda makes sense."

"So…" Yang probed, nudging me with her shoulder. "We gonna keep going then?"

"Yeah…" I sighed. "I guess so."

"Sweet!" Yang exulted, jumping up and dragging me to my feet. "Would it kill you to have a little more enthusiasm?"

"Yang, I'm voluntarily participating in a variation of Chinese water torture. A lack of enthusiasm is to be expected." I walked wearily over to the mat as I rubbed my palms with my thumbs.

"Chinese?" she queried, confused.

"Yeah, you…" My indignant protestation on her lack of knowledge was cut short as I realized I had made another reference to earth.

 _Whoops,_ I thought. _I'm going to have to get a hand on these slips._

"... never you mind," I finished dismissively. "Why would I be excited?"

"I was excited when me and my dad did this," Yang shrugged. "I couldn't wait to be a total badass huntress in training."

I nodded my head in concession to the point. "I admit, total badassery does have its appeals."

"Well there you go," she grinned as we took our positions. "But you've gotta work for it."

"But I'm not working."

"That's the attitude!" Yang shouted. "Now come on short stack."

I just shook myself free of my smile and went to meet my chosen fate. It only took a couple of minutes to remember why I had stopped as my hands almost immediately started aching again. This time however, I pressed on through it with a far better attitude.

 _It's not just pointless suffering. It has a purpose, like working out. I've just got to stick to it for now._

And stick to it I did. For the next few days, my schedule consisted of a workout in the morning, reading in the library for the purpose of learning, and then training with Yang in the afternoon with some meals thrown in between. I was so exhausted and battered by the end of these days that I spent hardly any time with team CFVY (how they managed to come up with 'coffee' with that is beyond me) or SYBR. Instead I would go back to my room and fall into a deep sleep, trusting in my aura to make me ready for the next day.

Finally, a week and two days after we had begun, there was a breakthrough.

I chatted casually with Yang as we got ready, joking about how done I was with this training. Regardless of what I now knew about its purpose, now that a week had passed with no end in sight I was getting a little discouraged.

Then, it happened. Yang threw a quick jab into my palm as she had innumerable times before, but as it connected the blow felt muted.

It was like having my lacrosse padding on. The force of the impact was the same, but there was an extra layer between me and that impact that absorbed, cushioned, and protected me from feeling a lot of the force.

"Woah woah woah." I called a halt as I instinctively turned my palms over to see if anything was different. Nothing was, of course.

"You okay? Did you get hurt?" Yang moved over and gently grabbed my hand, checking it over like a mother might.

"No mom," I joked, feeling excitement well up inside me. "I think I just did it. I think my aura just protected me. Your jab totally felt like it was hitting a layer of padding."

"Really?" Yang queried.

"Yeah," I immediately replied with a wide grin. "It was the craziest thing ever, because I half expected to see a thick pad on my palm but there was nothing. So weird!"

"It's pretty awesome," Yang agreed, sharing in my excitement. "I love it. Now come on, let's do it some more. Make sure it's there and wasn't just a fluke."

"Yes ma'am!"

We went at it again, and I was amazed to find it hold up again and again. The punches were felt, but they didn't have nearly the impact they did before.

"Is this why I was bruising and bleeding all over the place and you looked so fresh even after I landed some hits?" I asked as we worked at a faster pace, Yang mixing it up to try and finally work over my whole body instead of just my hands.

"Huh?"

"During the spar," I clarified, checking a kick. No matter where Yang hit, the same shielding effect kept me from the worst of it.

"Yeah," she grinned. "It makes it a lot harder to be hurt. You never had a chance."

"Not that I would have stood a chance anyway."

"You're right though," she laughed. "Speaking of, you're doing pretty well. Do you want to do a little sparring now? Test it out for real?"

"You think so?" I said, jumping at the opportunity. "Absolutely?"

"You do remember how it went last time?" I narrowed my eyes as Yang giggled, miming someone staggering around holding their jaw.

"Yeah. I remember locking you in a sleeper hold and knocking you out cold for a couple seconds." This time it was Yang's turn to frown as I chuckled.

"Try it again, short stack," she grumbled as we slipped into a ring. "See what happens."

"You'll see what happens," I boasted. "I'll take you down and out every single time. I've got the aura, now I've got the training. I'm unstoppable!"

"I sense all bark no bite," Yang taunted in return.

"You're more right than you know," I admitted, causing us both to laugh. "Ohhh, how screwed am I? Scale of one to ten, ten being the worst."

"Thirteen." It was delivered so quickly and matter-of-factly I had to double check that Yang was still smiling.

"Don't sell yourself short there," I joked sarcastically.

"I won't," Yang laughed as we took up stances opposite each other. "Now Glen, since it's still so new to you, you're still going to have to put some concentration to maintain the shield. It's going to be hard to split your focus while fighting, but you need to be aware of that."

"Okay," I nodded, absorbing the information as best I could. "We ready?"

"Let's go. Don't worry, I'll take it easy on you," she smirked as we began circling.

 _Wait a minute._ A serious thought popped into my mind, born of our jesting.

"Hold up half a second," I frowned. As Yang looked at me quizzically and lowered her hands, I began a quick round of experimentation.

The first thing I did was place a hand around my own throat, pushing in with my thumb gradually. There was a token resistance, but I still was able to easily move to where it became harder to breathe.

"The heck are you doing Glen?" Yang asked in semi-amused confusion.

"Just testing some things," I replied, taking my right hand off my throat and grabbing a finger on my left hand. Bending the digit backwards, I quickly reached the straining point where tendons and joints were working to keep themselves together. Again, there was more resistance than I would have normally expected but not enough to stop me. _Huh. Does aura not protect against overextensions and the kind of pressure application that can get you choked out?_

Just to confirm what I suspected was true and not just a product of my new aura not working properly, I punched myself in the thigh. Sure enough, I felt the impact but at a fraction of the strength.

 _Huh. That's interesting._

Frankly I don't know what I expected on the first one. I'd already proven people with aura could be choked as with Yang. But the test on my finger proved that hyperextension was still possible. Arm bars, leg locks - they were all a go too.

 _Nice._

"You trying to drain your aura so you don't have to fight me? You that scared?" Yang teased.

"You're right," I nodded solemnly. "That's what it was. Silly me." The tough facade cracked with a smile. "C'mon. Let's do this."

 _You know what? Screw it._

"Wanna just box?" I asked.

"Sure," Yang grinned. "That's one way to commit suicide."

"I didn't think I was that intimidating," I shot back, deliberately misunderstanding her.

Yang just rolled her eyes but didn't reply. She chose instead to pick up her hands and begin our little spar.

 _Okay. It'll simplify things to have to only track hands and not also worry about feet. That'll free up brain space to focus on keeping my aura up._

 _I hope._

I went up and challenged Yang in close, taking an orthodox boxing stance. The blonde seemed to sense the challenge and took it up. I dipped a shoulder to move my head out of the way of a straight jab Yang threw to begin the match.

Countering with a straight, I tried to cut over her own blow and connect with her chin. Yang moved back just far enough to dodge that, and then proceeded to bob and slip around a flurry of hooks, jabs, and uppercuts. The few solid hits I landed were either to the torso or were blocked by her forearms when they were in danger of striking her head. Now that I knew of how effective aura could be, I had little hope that they had done any damage. To add insult to injury, several times after Yang slipped a blow she tagged me with a quick hook or straight. It wasn't painful like it had been the first time, but it was enough to reveal the gap between our abilities.

 _Okay. That's not working,_ I thought as Yang closed back in. _She's way better at boxing than I am right now. Switching it up._

I feigned like I was backing away, waiting for Yang to close the distance between us. Once she was in closer and still moving forward, I struck. Stepping in I launched into a spinning back kick. My heel powered into her solar plexus as the quick and powerful karate kick made itself known. To my delight I received a sharp exhale as a Yang had some of her breath knocked out of her.

"Nice one," she grunted. "I wasn't made aware we were using kicks."

I just shrugged apologetically. "Sorry. But I don't think purely boxing was going my way."

"Well, now that I know…" Yang smiled an almost predatory smile.

 _I think focusing on keeping my aura up right now would be a great career move._

Next I knew I was under serious assault.

The blows came thick and fast, with me only being able to react to check the kicks. Yang's hand speed, on the other … hand … was difficult to keep up with and almost impossible to react to every punch individually. I finally managed to get into the clench to ease the battering I was taking. Aura may have eased the force significantly, but it wasn't what I would have called painless. Not by any stretch of the imagination.

 _Well, it's a lot harder for her to beat on you now and this is playing to your strengths. Capitalize!_

I immediately went for the same takedown I had tried the previous spar that had been so effective. If I could just get her to the ground, the tables would turn to my advantage - but it seemed that wasn't to be.

"No you don't," Yang crowed triumphantly as she moved her feet back far enough that I couldn't hook them. "Not falling for that twice."

 _Crap, she learns fast._ It was going to be fruitless to continue to try and force the issue; if I had learned anything in martial arts it was if at first you don't succeed, try something else.

My first move was to get an underhook and turn into Yang, trying to throw her over my hip. It should have worked - it really should have. But by some ungodly power Yang managed to shuffle around faster than I could get in proper position. In doing so she kept me from getting her over the pivot point of my hip and instead caused us to dance around awkwardly.

Shoving and twisting hard, Yang would have escaped had not my hand found purchase in the brown short-sleeved jacket she wore. My grip allowed me to reel her in once more, but not before suffering several more hooking punches to my torso.

The third time I abandoned a set technique that would put me in an advantageous position in favor of getting us on the ground by any means available.

Winding both fists into the puffy sleeves of Yang's jacket, I simply flung my entire body backwards while wrapping my legs around her knees. With her legs being prevented from catching her balance, the brawler fell down on top of me.

Shifting as fast as I could, I switched my legs to wrap around her midsection. While my right ankle locked in behind my left knee to complete that triangle hold, my arms wrapped around the small of her back pinning her body against mine.

Yang began to struggle and attempt to muscle her way out. Already several seconds in and I could feel the grip in my hands weakening as she threatened to break free. Instinctively to try and stop her escape attempt, I began to squeeze my thighs together. The crushing anaconda like pressure must have made it difficult to breathe, as Yang's struggles slowed.

Then she suddenly jerked upwards with an unexpected strength and broke free of my arms.

 _Oh crap._

Yang stood, causing me to rest on my shoulders and neck as I refused to immediately release my legs. As she leaned over to start pounding my face in, I made my escape. Or rather, I would have.

Wow, that's starting to sound familiar. Almost got away from Torchwick, almost got away from Coco, almost got away from Yang… Let's hope that doesn't become a pattern.

Anyway, what I intended to do was release my legs and instead plant my feet on her hips to push my face out of arm's reach. Well, it worked halfway. I did manage to get my feet on her hips and push her back. Then however, Yang twisted to get past the barrier I had imposed.

One of my feet slipped off and Yang came crashing down between my legs with predictable results.

"Hgkk," I half wheezed, half choked as I immediately tapped out on the mat. "Stopstopstop…"

"Are you okay?" Yang asked as she scrambled to her feet. The question seemed a superfluous one as I curled up in the fetal position on the mat, hands clamped over the family jewels. "What happened?"

 _I hope that it's obvious._

"I'll be fine," I grunted. "Not the worst I've taken, but not comfortable. Just give me a couple minutes."

"Did I really-"

"Yes," I groaned. "You landed right on my testicles."

If I hoped that this would garner me some sympathy I was sorely mistaken. Yang barely attempted to conceal her amusement as I writhed in slow motion. "What happened to your aura there, short stack?"

"I don't know. I wasn't thinking about keeping it up; all my mental faculties were devoted to my next move," I said through clenched teeth.

"I don't know, I wasn't thinking about it," Yang mocked in an exaggerated high-pitched voice.

"I'm under stress," I wheezed, well aware my voice had risen in timbre.

"It's just so funny," Yang laughed. "Your voice is usually pretty deep, but now you sound more like Jaune."

"I'm glad one of us finds humor in my pain."

It took a few minutes of enduring Yang's needling and the aching, burning, nauseating pain, but eventually one of those faded away.

"Hey, let's talk about your decision to box me. Now that was a pretty _ballsy_ move."

I'll let you figure out which one it was.

"I did it because I wanted less to focus on," I explained from where I sat, legs dangling over the edge of the ring. "I thought if I only had to contend with the hands it would leave room for me to focus on keeping my aura up and protective."

"And how did that work Glen?" Yang asked, sitting next to me.

"Well, my aura kept up just fine, but I didn't."

"I'll say," she chuckled. "You got absolutely destroyed out there. Actually, let's check your aura."

Yang reached into her pocket and pulled out her scroll, deftly flicking open a program and holding it out for me to see. On the screen was an image of my face with a bar next to it - a bar that had now dipped down into the red.

"Hold on." I snatched the scroll out of Yang's hand and held it to my ear. "Yeah?... Yeah, with Yang… She expects me to be competent… I know right?... She's crazy… Listen, I've got to go… Love you. Love you... Alright. See ya tonight. Bye-bye."

"Give me that," Yang said as she grabbed her scroll back. "You're an idiot, you know that?"

"I've been told," I chuckled. "Oh man. That didn't seem to last as long as last time."

"Hmmm?"

"The fight," I said. "I lasted longer last time."

"Well, I can give you two reasons," Yang grinned. "First, aura doesn't last as long when you're actively using it to protect you. It takes more energy. Secondly… I didn't take it as easy on you."

"At least not after that kick," I grumbled. "Geez, you were just screwing with me when we boxed and I still couldn't hit you."

"Hey, give yourself some credit- you managed to land a couple," Yang said in my defense.

"Yeah, like four or five," I snorted. "And half of those were just glancing blows. You tagged me with at least that many and you weren't even trying."

"If it's any consolation, I'm one of the best fighters of the first years, and fighting in the same style as you no less. I'm kicking the asses of people with a lot more training than you." Yang spoke without arrogance, as just a statement of fact - which was far more intimidating. "You'd probably kick the average White Fang grunt to the curb as you stand now, so you're not too bad."

"Well, that'll be a good benchmark if I ever get into a fight with one again," I joked.

"Again?" Yang looked surprised at that. "What, you've fought them before?"

 _Oh, right. She doesn't know._

"Well, fight's a strong word. I got stuck down by the docks while there was a big protest going on and some huge White Fang dude took exception to me and took a swing. We brawled it out and I barely managed to win that, but then I got jumped by his buddies. I was lucky Velvet showed up and beat them all off," I informed Yang, condensing down the events that had happened what seemed like ages ago. "This was before my aura was unlocked."

"Huh," hummed Yang. "Well now you're stronger, faster, and you have some protection. Plus I'll do my best to bring your skills up to par."

"Yeah," I asked. "Speaking of my skills, what do I need to work on?"

"Everything," Yang replied bluntly.

"Gee, is that all?" I quipped sarcastically. "I was hoping for some more specific pointers."

"Fine," she laughed. "If you insist. I'm not concerned about your power. Those hits are solid when they connect. What I want to work on more is your hand speed and accuracy with the strikes, but again I'm not terribly worried. That'll improve with sparring as well."

"So what am I really lacking then?"

"Your movement," she said immediately. "You're avoiding a few hits but mostly you're just hunkering down and absorbing the majority. That's really killing you."

"Yeah," I admitted. "I can see that. You're moving so fluidly and always right to where I'm not. It's so difficult just to get a strike anywhere close to you."

"I'm anticipating you. I can read your body language well enough to begin to move out of the way of your strike and then the rest is muscle memory. I'll teach you how to do that too." Yang pushed her hair back and scratched her head contemplatively. "But I really want to learn more about that other stuff you do."

"Other stuff? Oh you mean the grappling," I realized. "Yeah, I can show you some moves. Do you want to do it right now, or..."

"Are you up to it? After all, you did just take quite a beating," Yang said.

"Well, it was fine when I had my aura up… but then, you know, I got hit in the testicles because I couldn't split my focus."

Yang waved off my concern. "You'll get better at it. I don't have to devote anything to maintaining the barrier anymore; it's just up and running all the time. If I had to guess when you'll hit that point based on your current progression… oh, I give it another week, week and a half or so."

"That soon?" I was somewhat surprised. "I would have anticipated at least a month or more, easily."

Yang shook her head. "I told you once we make that first breakthrough it'll be a lot easier to track your progress. Now that we've gotten here movement and landing probably won't be far off either. No, the only thing that's really uncertain as to how long it'll take to figure out is your semblance."

 _My semblance,_ I thought excitedly to myself. _I wonder what it'll be._

After long enough of Coco yanking my chain about this, I made it a pointed goal of mine to learn all about huntsmen and huntresses along with the history of Remnant. Beacon's library had proved a godsend, turning up a wealth of information on just about everything I could ever dream of wanting to know. Finding out about a world that I was stuck in gave me an intrinsic desire to study and memorize; it was self motivation hadn't really had with history classes back on earth. As such, I had picked up a lot in not too long of a time period.

Anyway, it turns out semblances are the grade-A definition of badass. Probably witchcraft too. The description loosely was a more tangible manifestation of aura. In practice it was super strength, or summoning vines, or shooting flames out of your hands, or levitation, or invisibility - the possibilities were apparently endless.

"Yeah," I grinned with a childlike excitement. "A semblance…"

Yang raised an eyebrow. "Don't get too ahead of yourself there. It usually takes a while to discover a semblance unless you're placed under serious duress."

"Like you punching me over and over?"

Shaking her head, Yang's golden hair whipped around. "No. Like, life and death struggle duress."

"Well, as tempting as that sounds…" I trailed off, spreading my hands out. "I think I'll take the long route. I've had enough life or death situations I would be happy if I never saw another one."

"Yeah," chuckled Yang. "Well to get back to the business at hand, we could run some drills to work on the aspects of your fighting that need improvement, you could teach me some of those moves, or…" Yang popped out her scroll again and checked the time. "Or because it's been a hella long and grueling week for you we could cut off early and go see if we could catch dinner with my team. Weiss has us on a schedule for meals, along with everything else."

"Ouch," I winced in sympathy.

"Yeah. The only reason I can eat later is because of my training you."

"Your welcome," I said only half-jokingly, shaking my head in disbelief. "Geez, it sounds like she's running a military outfit, not a team of four teens."

"Tell me about it," Yang groaned. "Honestly it wouldn't be that bad if she gave us a little free time, but not only is she not doing that but she acts so much better than everyone else."

"Yeah, I got that 'holier than thou' vibe. Really though, I wouldn't mind getting to see Ruby again and meet the rest of your team."

"You mean meet Blake," Yang corrected. "You've met everyone else already."

"Yeah. I'll go with that option. Lead on to the cafetorium, fair lady."

"Alright," chuckled Yang. "Flattery will get you everywhere."

Yang and I left the gym and navigated our way through the school, arriving at the cafeteria just as the dinner was beginning. There were about a hundred teens milling around, some sitting at tables, but most lined up to get food. There was a refreshing clamor of a thousand conversations going on at once, punctuated by loud cries and bursts of laughter.

"There they are," Yang pointed to a table by the entrance.

Sure enough, there was Ruby with the distinctive red hood and cape, Weiss with her distinctive snow-white hair and complexion, and a third figure with raven black hair and a bow.

"Hey guys!" Yang called out cheerily. "Long time no see. Look what I brought along!"

"Glen!" cried out a small voice, and a second later there was an impact in the middle of my chest that caused me to stagger back a step. Then as quickly as the hug had been initiated, the red streak disengaged to reveal Ruby. She crinkled up her nose, an expression that practically melted my heart it was so cute, and wiped her hands on her skirt. "Eww. You're all sweaty."

"Nice to see you too sis," Yang said, crossing her arms next to me. "Glad to see I take second place to a sweaty guy you met a week ago."

"No!" protested Ruby, rushing to give the blonde a quick hug as well. "It's just I get to see you all the time Yang!"

"Okay, that was more than understandable," I butted in, pointing at Ruby. "But that I take exception to," I finished, shifting the finger to point at the brawler.

"Are you denying you're a sweaty guy?" Yang asked innocently.

"Glen!" came another familiar voice from behind me. I swiveled on the spot, looking back at another group of four that was seated next to team SYBR. The speaker was the redhead that I had spoken to when I was searching for the right room, her hand held up at shoulder height in a small wave.

"Hey! It's good to see you again. Thanks for your help again, ahhh…" I stalled out, drawing a blank. "What's your name?"

"Pyrrha," she replied. If I had feared insult in my forgetfulness, that was quickly put to rest. If anything, her small smile seemed to grow a little wider.

"Thank you Pyrrha. I'm sorry, I'm not particularly great with names," I laughed lightly.

"No, it's fine! It's good to see you as well. Oh! This is my team, team JNPR," Pyrrha said, gesturing to the other three seated around her.

"Hey," I waved. "Nice to meet you all."

"Lie Ren," a green-garbed guy introduced himself stiffly. He had long black hair pulled back into a ponytail, one pink lock of hair matching his pink irises. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"You as well," I nodded, staring at his face a little longer. "I hope you don't mind me saying, you have some really crazy colored eyes. I've never seen anything like that. They're really cool."

"Thank y-" he began neutrally, before his words were lost to me as my feet left terra firma and I was shaken like a protein drink.

"I mind! No one gets to stare into Renny's eyes! No one! What happens if you get lost in those pools of magenta passion? Who will save you!?"

I barely processed the melodramatically spoken words which appeared to come from a kaleidoscope of white, pink, and orange that held me captive.

"Nora… put him down." Ren's passive voice somehow cut through the F-4 tornado that had hold of me, resulting in me being placed back on the cafeteria tile. My legs wobbled unsteadily under me as I took in the tempest that stood before me.

She was shorter than I by about a foot, which begged the question as to how she was able to pick me up and toss me around so easily. She had orange hair cropped short and blue eyes that seemed to dance with a certain maniac energy. For clothing she wore a white top with a heart-shaped cutout and a pink skirt.

"This is Nora Valkyrie," introduced Ren as if I hadn't just been suddenly accosted.

"And this is our leader, Jaune Arc!" said Pyrrha, nudging the blonde sitting next to her who looked spaced out as he poked at his food with a fork.

"Huh?" he said in confusion, jerking up and looking around. "What is it Pyrrha?"

"We're just making our introductions," I cut in. "I'm Glen Foray."

"Jaune Arc," the teen nodded back before returning to his food.

 _He looks a little down. I wonder what's-_

"Well, not that this isn't cute and all, but, I've still got to finish introducing you to _my_ team," said Yang, cutting into my thoughts as she sidled up next to me. "C'mon, short stack."

"I'll be just a minute," I joked as Yang hauled me all of five feet to be stood in front of their side of the table.

"Glen, you've met Ruby-"

"Hi!"

"-Weiss-"

"You again?"

"- but now I'd like to introduce you to my silent and mysterious partner, the beautiful Blake Belladonna!" Yang jumped around and hugged the girl from behind, pushing their faces together. "She's excitable, I know."

"Please get off," Blake said. Her voice and expression was deadpan, having wrung every ounce of excitement from those words and thrown it away. As Yang begrudgingly did what her partner asked, Blake's eyes flicked over me as if making a judgment on what she saw.

 _Holy Mary mother of God,_ I breathed internally. _She is stunningly beautiful._ Her eyes which had settled on my own were a fascinating amber yellow I had never seen before, set against pale skin and framed by jet black hair. _Is this just ninety percent of the women here? It's just my bad luck to be surrounded by gorgeous women my own age. What a hardship I must endure._

"I'm Glen Foray." I introduced myself, holding a hand out to shake as I normally did. Blake just glanced at the gesture but made no effort to return it.

"So I heard."

I waited for something more, but when it was clear nothing more was coming Yang stepped in again. "And that's Blake for you. Friendliest and most outgoing of team SYBR!"

"I thought I was the friendliest and most outgoing," whined Ruby.

"Nope, sorry sis. That title belongs to me." Yang pointed a thumb at her chest.

"But I thought that it belonged to Blake," I said, acting confused as the girl in question sighed heavily and Ruby and Yang began arguing back and forth.

"If you are all done eating, we may as well go to our dorm start on the homework that was assigned to us today. I trust you all took notes on Professor Port's lecture?" cut in Weiss cooly.

Yang and Ruby had begun to grumble at the beginning of Weiss's pronouncement, but then something incredible happened. As soon as the name 'Port' was mentioned Ruby fell asleep on the table, Blake pulled out a book and began to read, and Yang looked to have developed a tic. Whatever it's intended purpose, everyone at the table quieted down a little and finally got back to eating.

"Wanna grab something?" Yang asked, gesturing to the long line.

"Well yeah, but I'll wait until the line dies down and just grab something then," I shrugged nonchalantly. "I'd rather hang around with you all than stand in line forever."

"Kay. I think I'll do the same thing."

"I want us to be back at the dorm in fifteen minutes," Weiss frowned. "If you want to get something to eat, do it now."

"But you said I could come back later because I was training Glen!" Yang protested the ruling animatedly.

"And are you training Glen right now?" Weiss said, pointedly staring at the two of us.

"C'mon Weiss, cut me a little slack! This is practically an extra class but I'm the one teaching it. I think a little extra time won't kill my grades." Yang's tone was easy and lighthearted, but there was a strained undercurrent that spoke to her desire not to go back so soon.

"That time was allotted for training Yang. If you wanted free time I've allotted a block for that," said Weiss haughtily.

"Yeah, an hour a day," Yang shot back. "That's nothing!"

Weiss seemed genuinely puzzled at that. "An hour is more than generous if you factor in an adequate amount of sleep, the time we spend in classes and at meals, and there are periodic five minute breaks built into our study time."

"That's not generous. It's rigid, militaristic and stifling," complained the blonde hotly, but her words fell on deaf ears.

"It's productive," Weiss countered, not deigning to look at Yang. Instead she examined her nails, searching out some unimaginably small imperfection. "I'll expect you to be there on time with the rest of the team."

"Fine," growled Yang, her eyes by a trick of the light seeming to flicker red. Her fists clenched briefly, but as she exhaled slowly I could see the tension release from her body. "Hey, sorry about this Glen. I wish I could stay, but Ice Queen isn't giving me anything to work with."

"It's fine. You want me to go with you in line, or…"

"Nah." Yang stood, stepping up and beginning to edge towards the line. "Thanks though. You just hang here with everybody."

I nodded my thanks as she walked off, sliding in next to Blake. The bookworm glanced up at me briefly with a neutral expression before returning to her book. Nora was talking animatedly to Ren, who listened with apparent disinterest, and Weiss wouldn't look at me. Ruby and Pyrrha, now that the little tiff seemed to be over, were both glancing sideways at Jaune.

"Jaune?" Pyrrha asked delicately. "Are you okay?"

"Hmm?" Jaune started from where he sat picking at his plate. "Oh, yeah. Why?"

"It's just that you seem a little… not, okay," chipped in Ruby, nervously fiddling with her fingers.

"Guys, I'm fine. Seriously, look!" Jaune grinned weakly, giving a thumbs up. He chuckled, but it was painfully obvious to all that there was no heart behind it. Almost subconsciously he glanced across the cafeteria as his thumbs up slowly curled into a clenched fist.

"Jaune, Cardin has been picking on you since the first week of school," said Pyrrha, drawing my attention back to her.

"Who, Cardin Winchester? Naw, he just likes to mess around, you know? Practical jokes." Jaune waved off her accusation, but Ruby wasn't about to let him off so lightly.

"He's a bully," she said, eyes narrowing.

"Who's Cardin?" I asked.

"He looks like a gorilla in plate armor!" shouted Norah helpfully.

 _That sounds like… yeah, I'm pretty certain I know who that is._

"I think I've had the displeasure," I nodded. "Bumped into one of his buds a week or so ago, and he tried to get all up in my grill about it. I can't say I'm surprised he's a bully."

"See Jaune?" Ruby pressed, leaning across the table. "Glen knows he's a jerk and he's only met him once."

"No, no, you've got him all wrong," Jaune denied weakly. "He just likes messing around is all. You know, practical jokes and stuff. Name one time he's bullied me." Jaune finished with air quotes and sat back in his chair.

If he was expecting silence, he was about to be in for a shock.

"Oh yeah?" Ruby cried, taking up the challenge. "What about all those times he knocks your books out of your hands?"

"It's no big deal," Jaune laughed shrilly. "It's an inside joke. You had to be there to get it."

"What about when he activated you shield so it stuck in the door? You had to get me to help you get it out," Pyrrha added.

"He probably bumped the trigger on accident. You know my sword's old; the mechanism probably doesn't work as well as it used to."

 _Why on earth is he defending the punk who's tormenting him?_ I thought in bewilderment.

"And when he shoved you in a rocket propelled locker and launched it? I suppose that was an accident?" The little red reaper crossed her arms, looking intently at Jaune.

"A rocket-propelled locker?" I asked in disbelief. "That sounds absurdly dangerous."

"He's right, Jaune," Ruby said softly. "You could have been really hurt."

 _What? Oh, whoops. Well, that's a stroke of good luck._

In all honesty, I hadn't been talking about Jaune's predicament. I had been far more confused by the idea of a _rocket propelled locker._ Who on earth thought that was a good idea? Why would anyone purchase it? What the heck could it ever be used for except injury and accident?

Not that I didn't care about what had happened to Jaune, of course. That was just the first thing my mind latched onto and my mouth ran with it unthinkingly. I was just glad I hadn't tagged on the 'impractical and expensive' or my sentence might not have been taken out of context so easily.

Jaune's mouth flopped and shut a few times before he answered. "I didn't land far far from the school," he protested.

"Jaune, you know if you ever need help you can just ask," Pyrrha said.

"Oh!" cried Nora, jumping up enthusiastically. "We'll break his legs!"

 _Oh dear lord,_ I thought internally, looking at the dangerous gleam in her eyes. _I would be more supportive of the idea if I didn't believe she would genuinely follow through with it._ No one else at the table even flinched however, so I let it slide.

"Guys really, it's fine." Jaune stood, gathering up his tray and food. "Besides, it's not like he's only a jerk to me. He's a jerk to everyone."

I raised a finger, feeling compelled to raise a point even though I hadn't known him for long. "Just because he does it to everyone doesn't make it right."

Just as I finished my sentence, a familiar accented voice cried out in pain. "Ow, that hurts!" My head whipped around, homing in on the same group of four that had chased me earlier. They were all laughing heartily, pointing and joking as the largest tugged on one of Velvet's ears. "Please stop," she grimaced.

"Atrocious," frowned Pyrrha, but I missed the rest of what she said. I was too busy clambering to my feet, lost in angry thought.

 _Touching of a faunus' animal features is usually an act of intimate trust,_ my mind dredged up from my first meeting with Coco and Velvet so long ago. That only served to further incense my anger at seeing my friend, one of the sweetest people I had met, mistreated so. _That bastard,_ I growled internally.

"What a freak," the largest laughed as he pulled on her ear one more time.

"Hey, you Cardin?" I barked shortly as I stalked up to his table. One of his buddies with grey hair tried to get in my way, but I shoved past him.

"Yeah," the teen said cockily, looking up.

"Good." I smiled thinly, making no pretense of friendliness. "Why don't you let go of her ear?"

"Oh, it's you," Cardin smirked, standing up and releasing Velvet. "I was wondering if you'd ever grow big enough balls to stop running away."

"G-Glen?" Velvet stammered, eyes wide.

"You alright?" I asked concernedly, putting a hand on her shoulder and ignoring Cardin's taunt.

"Y-yeah, I'll be okay," she said softly.

"Alright. Well, let's get going, okay?" I turned and began to guide us away, but a large hand clamped down on my shoulder.

"Don't think you can run away again you little bastard," he growled. "You're nothing but a coward."

I turned, looking the bully dead in the eye with a sarcastic half smile. "Cardin, I think you're projecting."

"Projecting?" he grimaced. "What the hell does that mean?"

"Figure it out," I snapped. "It might involve some reading though, be warned. C'mon Velvet."

My anger was a constant pressure that seemed to push out from the center of my chest as it tried to force me to action. My hands were clenched, and my breathing heavy as I exercised my self control.

Once again as I turned, the hand clamped down on my shoulder with all the force of a vice grip. "No, you and that freak don't get off that-"

 _She's not a freak, you_ _ **fuck**_ _._

My tenuous control of self broke. I grabbed onto Cardin's wrist and arm, dropping to a knee and twisting my torso to throw him to the ground. Keeping a hold of his wrist and forearm, I tried to finish off quickly with an armbar. Cardin grunted and strained, but I arched my back and pressed down on his torso with my feet as I began to hyperextend his elbow. The resistance from aura at the tipping point was far more than it had been with my finger, and coupled with Cardin's enormous strength I very much doubted I could actually do any damage.

He didn't know that though.

"Stop struggling or I'll break your damn arm. Try me. Try me!" I roared. "And you get your buddies to stay back!"

My warning came too late, however. All of Cardin's buddies began to grab at me and stomp me to pull me off their friend. Between them and Cardin's continuing struggles I lost my grip and was hauled to my feet, pinned between the silver one and the tan one.

"Fuck," grunted Cardin as he stood up, rolling his shoulder and rubbing his elbow. "You fuck."

It was at that moment I realized exactly what I had done in letting my anger get the better of me instead of just playing it out. I had walked into the wolves den on my lonesome and kicked the alpha in the nuts. Not only was I pinned by two guys bigger than I was, but as Cardin cracked his knuckles in front of me I became acutely aware of how _massive_ the dude was.

He was close to seven feet, and probably two fifty of muscle. Putting his three compatriots aside, I was fighting way out of my weight class.

 _Crap._ I saw Cardin clench a fist and go to wind up, but then I saw him take a quick look around. About twenty people were staring on with interest, and many more were shooting glances our way. _Take it Cardin. People are watching. You don't want to do this._

Unfortunately I didn't consider Cardin's clearly fragile ego. I had just come and made somewhat of a fool of him with everyone watching - and now in the eyes of Cardin he had to prove himself again.

Because of how I was being held I barely managed to twist my body to absorb the blow on my obliques.

"Hnng," I grunted, holding my stomach as I was dropped.

 _You idiot. You didn't prep your aura. What the hell did you just spend all that time with Yang for?_

At that moment Velvet jumped in with a cry of "Stop it!" and Cardin was brought to his knees. The two events were not connected, I assure you.

Nora had pranced up and hit Cardin in the back of his knees with a tray table. "Bow before your queen, you peasant! No one harms Nora's subjects!" The girl laughed maniacally as Cardin scrambled to his feet, hands on hips. Now, I may have been out of my league with Cardin, but he was far outclassed by this girl who was approaching two feet shorter and weighing in at a buck fifty less.

Nora simply loaded up like she was swinging a baseball bat and hit cardin with the tray so hard he was sent skittering along the floor for half the length of the cafeteria. The other three looked as if they considered briefly attacking Nora back, but only ever so briefly. Still faced with a madly laughing girl who had just sent a massive dude flying, they wisely chose to retreat and help out their leader.

"And don't come crossing my borders again!" shouted the mad girl victoriously, standing on a table and waving her arms victoriously.

"Glen! Glen, are you okay?" Velvet asked as I slowly stood.

"Yeah," I nodded. "I'm fine. You're fine though, you're sure?" I gave her the once over.

"Y-yes! But you just-"

'Don't worry about me. I've been working with Yang for the last week or so," I laughed. "I'm just glad you're fine. Thanks for the assist, Nora."

"You actually tried to break his leg!" Nora clapped her hands delightedly, giggling all the while.

"His arm," I corrected.

"Whatever," she brushed off, still giggling as she pumped my hand in a firm handshake. "I can tell we'll get along famously!"

 _Oh dear,_ I thought. _I feel like I'd rather have Cardin again. It'd probably be better for my health._

Looking down the row of tables, I made eye contact with Cardin as he exited. The large teen glared at me with an intensity that made my stomach sink; a glare that promised retribution. I believed it. Cardin would be back.

I was sure of it.

 **A/N: Oh boy! Schoolyard shake ups, bullies, all that jazz! I love it. I also love how nobody got up to help Velvet… but what do I know, right?**

 **But unfortunately for you all, college starts in a week, and I will be busy busy busy. The updates will probably be a lot more irregular and spaced out, just at a guess :(**

 **But hopefully there's a little bit of fun in here for you guys. Anyway, some responses:**

 **RadioPoisoning: Oh you are so close. So much closer than you know… oh man, don't tempt me to give away all my secrets. I'm much too excited for this.**

 **Gabriel H. Sapphire: I think I see what your driving at, but I don't see it as a split consciousness - though that could just be semantics. It's a suppression and compartmentalization of things that surface under certain triggers.**

 **Oh lordy, Glen's "triggered".**

 **But jokes aside, it's loosely based off of an event I experienced. A while back - I believe chapter three, if you want a time reference - I was in a pretty serious car accident when someone ran a red light. No one was hurt, I was fine - and I went back to school the next day, normal self. But any time afterwards, particularly for the next two months, any time I would see a car rolling towards an intersection I was approaching there would be a spike of adrenaline and nerves, or I'd smell the scent of the carbon dioxide from the airbag on my hoodie sleeves and get jolted back to the moment of impact.**

 **It all faded, and that's what I'm doing with Glen too - after all, angst for the sake of angst sucks. But that's what I'm loosely basing his reaction on. Make of it what you will.**

 **Bomberguy789: No! Don't be sad! I can't have it. Don't worry my friend, I recognize your name when it pops up. You've been around long, and I appreciate it, I really do. I hope this makes up for that. In my defense, it was one in the morning and I wanted to get this out XD**

 **To everyone: Yes, I'm having to play with RWBY (now SYBR) differently, but I have plans. We'll and up in a similar place, and Weiss won't be locked in her uptight box forever.**

 **Why am I up this late? I don't even know why I chose to work on this late at night when I have all day. Motivated at strange times I guess. Again, you all enjoy yourselves and have a good one. See you on the other side!**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Oh boy. It's been far too long for an apology to make this right, huh? Thank goodness we're not in a relationship. Well, tl;dr below. For now, hopefully, enjoy.**

I left fairly quickly after my brawl with Cardin. Well, I say brawl, but it wasn't much of a fight was it? I threatened to break his arm, got jumped by his buddies, got hit, then got saved by a delightfully insane orange haired powerhouse.

Regardless I was still upset, full of adrenaline, and not really in the mood for any sort of questions that I knew would no doubt follow from the assembly in front of me. So I said my goodbyes, thanked Nora, and left.

I stormed off to my room and once safely in the bathroom stripped off my t-shirt and studied my stomach. There was already an ugly bruise welling off to one side where Cardin had punched me. I took a moment to admire how big of a shot I had taken, and without activating my aura defensively.

 _Why are you so proud of that?_ My face twisted into disgust as I poked and pulled at my injury. _Activating your aura is the goal, so you don't take damage like this. You already know you can take big shots; what're you trying to prove?_

Focusing my aura, I activated the shield and pushed my fingertips against skin that now felt hard as iron. _Let's just do this next time, mmkay?_

One hot shower later and I was feeling totally refreshed. My anger had washed away fairly quickly, and I had a chance to clean up after being in my sweaty workout clothes for the better part of three hours. Yang was a brutal taskmaster in the gym.

I slicked back my hair into a rough approximation of what it traditionally looked like, content to wait for it to dry out to fully finesse it. After my long hot shower the bathroom was hot and steamy like a sauna, the air sitting heavily around me - so I just took a few minutes to sit on the edge of the tub and soak in the humidity. Does no one else do that? Just me? Cool, glad we had this talk.

I mean, I could try and prank you guys with something like "the humidity reminded me of Houston" and be really edgy and insightful, but the reality is that I had been doing this for a long time. I mean, don't force depth where there is none, right? Besides, its Houston. Not the Amazon where I was currently sitting.

The Amazon couldn't last forever though, and eventually the humidity and heat dropped off enough that it was no longer worth it. Stepping out of the bathroom with a towel loosely held around my waist, I was not prepared for what happened next.

Doesn't that sound like such a click bait title waiting to happen? _Man steps out of shower, is not prepared for what he finds waiting for him. Find out what here!_

"Oh hey Glen," said Coco from where she sat on one of the unused beds, texting away on her scroll. "I just … well damn."

The girl had glanced up and saw me standing there in shock with only a towel to cover me. "Well that's a surprise. You're looking good Glen. That training is really paying off, huh?" she winked.

"Jesus Christ," I muttered, holding the white cloth fabric tightly as I dashed into my little bedroom, Coco's wolf whistle chasing the door closed. I quickly threw on shorts and a t-shirt and walked back out in complete bewilderment and embarrassment.

"What the heck are you doing?" I asked indignantly, face red. "Is nothing sacred anymore?"

"What, I can't appreciate something I like?" she asked innocently.

"No I … Coco, stop it," I could feel the heat in my face spreading to my neck. "You're just teasing."

"Am I teasing?" she asked seductively, standing and moving right in front of me. Her teeth grabbed a corner of her lip, and she pushed her aviators back onto her head. "Am I really?"

I stopped breathing for a moment. I was all too aware of how beautiful she was, and how close she was. My eyes drifted from her lips to her eyes, my mind running slowly. "Coco," I managed breathlessly, putting my hands on her shoulders and keeping her away. "You are teasing. Don't play with me like this."

"It's too easy," she chuckled, backing off. "Just look at you, so flustered. It's so cute."

"Jesus, I think I need another shower," I groaned only half-jokingly.

"Oh come on. Handsome guy like you? You can't tell me no girl has ever flirted with you before."

"Not like that." My legs unsteadily led me to one of the beds and I flopped down on my stomach with a groan. "Well, there was one, but one encounter does hardly an expert make."

"There we go. You're getting your silver tongue back." I felt the bed shift as Coco sat next to me. "Well, if it makes you feel any better I didn't actually mean to see you in just a towel. I thought you would have clothes on."

"Why would I have clothes on?!"

"Uhh, I would have." Coco spoke like it was the obvious answer. "I mean, I just bring my clothes into the bathroom."

"May I perhaps point out that you live with other people, so you expect that if you walk out in a towel people will see you? I however, am _supposed_ to be living alone and don't anticipate such an event." My words were clipped and flowed at a rapid pace, a result of my embarrassment and frustration.

"You _may_ be right," Coco conceded.

"May be right," I snorted. "Of course I'm right. That brings up a good question though…How did you even get in here?"

Coco just shrugged maddeningly, a Cheshire cat grin spreading over her face. "I guess you'll never know."

"I… fine. Why are you here? That might be a better question."

"Well, your buddy Yang told me about what happened with Cardin. And I just wanted to thank you for standing up for Vel. Did you really try to break his arm?"

"Yeah. Kinda? I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have gone through with it. I just wanted to scare him, hurt him a little."

"Don't even hesitate next time," said Coco, clapping me on the back. "Just get that bastard's arm and do whatever you need to."

I spun around and sat up, feeling a little uneasy. The tone shift from Coco teasing me to _this_ was so fast it caught me off-guard.

Coco just continued unaware of my concerns. "If he thinks that he can just bully Vel and get away with it he has another thing coming."

"He didn't get away with it. He got launched down the cafeteria, by a food tray no less." Suddenly my own anger with Cardin seemed far more reasonable than this. I felt like I was dealing with a side of Coco I hadn't seen before, and it was a side that I needed to defuse very carefully.

"And don't think I didn't see that huge bruise." Coco shot me a scathing look. "They just held you down and hit you and you're going to defend them?"

"I'm fine. And no I'm not defending them, Coco. If you'll remember I jumped in to fight him right off the bat. I'm certainly pissed off about what he did."

"Good." Coco jumped on my words before I had a chance to explain further. "Then you should have no problem helping me and Fox teach Cardin and his buddies why it's a bad idea to mess with my team."

"I…" I searched for an argument against her, but the problem was that Coco was just feeding into my own feelings of anger and desiring justice be meted out. You all know what it's like; you know that you _shouldn't_ but you just want to anyway. "I… guess so."

"Good. Glad to have you on our side. I'll send you a message when we're ready." Coco stood and sashayed out to my door, her hips swinging side to side. "By the way Glen... you really think I was teasing?"

"Uhh, yeah. You're doing it right now. Nice try on the double bluff though."

Coco grinned wolfishly back at me. "Never change, Glen." With that she was gone, slipping out like she had never been there.

Except, of course, that was certainly not the case. I could hardly do anything except think about the brunette bombshell that had worked her way into my head.

 _Damn. But was she teasing though?_ Most of me said yes. I mean, Coco's modus operandi was teasing, needling, and getting way too into your personal space. _But was she though?_ My brain said she was. My heart said maybe kinda she was, but she's super hot so we should jump on it.

Fortunately or unfortunately, I approach things pretty logically so my heart got knocked down and out of the ring in two five minute rounds. Wait. Did I say heart? What I meant was-

 _Tap tap tap._

I frowned, disrupted from my meditations. I sat up and leaned forward, waiting to hear it again. _Tap tap tap._ It was a little quieter even than the first time, but still audible.

 _Who on earth- Remnant- could it be?_ I asked myself. _Not Coco, she'd just let herself in. Not Yang, she'd just knock on the door until it fell down._ I made my bets and coolly opened the door.

Before me stood, as I expected, a fairly nervous brown rabbit.

"Hey Velvet. What brings you here?" I asked, figuring I knew the answer.

Sure enough, I wasn't disappointed. "I… just wanted to talk a little. About what happened at dinner," she said tentatively.

"For sure Velvet. Come on in, have a seat." I gestured to the beds and chairs around the room and she nodded. "Thanks for knocking by the way. Some people don't."

"Of course," she nodded politely, perching on the edge of one of the beds. I chose to pull up one of the desk chairs and sit down in it. "Does everyone not?"

"Not one of your teammates," I complained halfheartedly. "She walked in here and kinda surprised me as I was coming out of the shower."

"Oh my Oum," gasped Velvet, hands flying to her mouth. "I'm so sorry. I'll talk with her when I get back, I promise."

"Hey, it's okay," I soothed her. "If it makes a difference I don't think it was intentional."

"You don't know her like I do," pouted Velvet.

I had to chuckle, both at the statement and at the expression itself. "Probably not. But you're not here to talk about Coco's attacks on my sanctity, are you?"

"No," sighed the bunny, looking exasperated with her teammates antics. "I wanted to ask you to please not tell Coco about what happened."

I quirked my head sideways, silently asking for more information. Velvet saw my unspoken question and continued with a hasty explanation. "I don't want Coco going out and getting revenge. She means well, she really does, but she can… overreact. She was bullied a lot as a kid and so it's a real sticking point for her."

I took in the new information and processed it, putting it together with what I already knew. _Huh. Kinda makes sense though. Really concerned with appearance, cocky confidence, quick witted - it's all covering or a result of those wounds. Interesting_.

It was a quick panicked wave from Velvet that brought me back. "Don't tell her that I told you that. Or talk about it at all. She wouldn't like that."

"Well…" I hesitated awkwardly. "I won't tell her you told me. Or ask her about it either. You have my word on that, I promise. But, ahh, the cat may be out of the bag already on Cardin. It wasn't me, but I'm pretty sure Yang told her about it. But yeah, Coco knows. Soo…"

There was a pregnant pause as Velvet digested this information. There was a troubled look as she brushed her hair back over an ear. The human ear, mind you. "That's what she came to talk about, isn't it?"

"Yeah," I admitted easily. "She talked about Cardin and wants to get back at him."

"You didn't accept, did you?" There was a strange intensity to Velvet's question that I was unaccustomed to. It showed in her eyes, the way that she sough mine out.

Her clear desire for me to say no made my answer less comfortable. "I… kind of did. I said I would help her and Fox."

"Glen, you can't," said Velvet. Her voice was pleading with me, tugging at the part of me that really didn't want to return wrong for wrong. "Two wrongs don't make a right," she continued, mirroring my thoughts.

"Well… I can't just let it go." As I tried to explain my reason to her, I felt my anger begin to simmer again - but it was hard to keep it up in the face of Velvet's expression imploring that I side with her. "I mean, Velvet, what he did to you was despicable. Cardin was abusing you over an immutable characteristic! Your ears are part of who you are and I think they're wonderful. And that's not even touching you as a person. You're as kind, compassionate, and sweet an individual as anyone could hope to meet. And I care about you, Velvet. You are the person I probably care most about; you more than anyone else on Remnant, no exaggeration. I mean, you and your mom took me in and helped me through a difficult time for me. So to see him bullying you… it really brings my blood to boil."

Velvet smiled softly and put a gentle hand on my arm. "Thank you Glen. It means a lot, what you said. I'm glad you care."

"Of course I care. I mean, the only other time I've ever gotten into a fight was with a real creep that was trying to make a pass at my younger sister."

"I'm glad I've been placed in such high company. I know you care about your family. And really, thank you for your kind words and for jumping to my defense. I do appreciate it." Velvet paused, mouth open and eyes casting themselves at the ceiling. "But… going after Cardin isn't going to fix anything."

"Fighting that dude that tried to come on to my sister fixed something," I said with a grim satisfaction. "I scared him bad enough he wouldn't even look at her sideways for fear of me beating him down."

"But Glen, you… well, you didn't solve the problem," Velvet argued back.

"Sure I did."

"Not… not really. He's just going to turn his attentions somewhere you can't see and target someone else."

"I… see what you're saying," I conceded. "You want a course of action to rehabilitate a person for the long term so they don't go back to whatever they were doing. But short term something still has to be done because my sister is still in danger. You're still being bullied. I mean, long term solutions don't often have an immediate effect."

"So… you… approach it carefully, Glen. But my situation there isn't… it isn't the same as your sister's predicament."

I sat back with my arms crossed, wondering what would be next. "Okay. How do you mean?"

"Well… I… it's different. If Cardin is being racist, and I fight back and beat him, then it just reinforces his stereotype. I'm not… I'm not solving anything."

"But that's got its own problems. What are you going to do, just let yourself get pushed around? If the bully has a target that doesn't push back then they'll just keep going," I argued back. "It's not a win. It's a loss."

"Okay!" said Velvet in exasperation, her voice shaking. "So I was too far on the passive side. But how is getting together with Coco and doing Oum knows what a solution? That's too far the other direction and it's just not right!"

"I…" I stopped and shook my head, halting my argument. Velvet was sat there, just two feet away, trembling with emotion. _Holy smokes. This really means a lot to her._ "C'mere. C'mere Velvet."

I stood, pulling her to her feet and wrapping the bunny into a big hug. She tensed up at first, but after a few seconds relaxed. Her forehead pushed into my chest, and her arms linked around back of my waist.

"I'm sorry Velvet. I don't know why I'm arguing with you. You're right, it wouldn't be the right thing to do to go after Cardin. I just don't want to see you getting hurt like that."

"It doesn't hurt," complained Velvet into my shirt.

"Of course it does," I said softly. "And it goes against every protective instinct I have to not jump down his throat."

Velvet had stopped shaking, and I slowly released her. "So… you're saying you won't go after him?"

I sighed, willing to concede this to Velvet. "I won't this time. But if it keeps up I don't know. You can talk to me then. Okay?"

"Okay." Velvet sat back down with a curious expression on her face. "You're weird Glen."

"Oh? How so?" I sat back down, but this time next to her on the bed rather than in the chair.

Velvet shrugged. "I'm just used to dealing with Coco. She just… never admits she's wrong if she can help it and just … keeps going until she gets her way. Or burns every bridge in the process."

"Don't get me wrong, I still think I'm mostly right and I'm still mad at Cardin." I shifted forward to lean my elbows on my knees. "But I'm not above admitting you have some good points too. Besides, it's not worth messing with our friendship over this. My goal isn't to upset you. I just want to help."

"It's just… weird. You're so straightforward."

"I certainly like to imagine I'm a well adjusted social animal." I chuckled at my own joke and shot Velvet a sideways grin, nudging her with my elbow a couple times.

"Stop it," she said, fending off my arm. "Cut it out Glen."

"Cut it out," I mimicked, adopting an Australian accent. "It's not right. Ey, you doin' alright mate? Yah look a little down. C'mon down undah. We'll throw a shrimp on the barbie for ya."

"No, stop that!" protested Velvet. "You're just mocking me now."

"Nothing could be further from the truth," I said indignantly in what I hoped was a sophisticated British accent. Really, it was just me imitating Alfred from Batman, but who was going to know the difference right? "I love your accent. It makes everything you speak into pure poetry. Poetry, I tell you! Now speak, fair maiden. Speak, for your voice quenches mine ears of their thirst-"

"Stop it," Velvet cut in, giving me a light shove sideways, her smile evident even in her voice. "You sound ridiculous."

"Okay, okay," I laughed. "I'll stop. Just trying to cheer you up. I don't want all our meetings to be about doom and gloom."

"They're not always so bad."

"Let's see," I held out my fingers and began to count off. "I'm new to Remnant and super confused, I figure out this is real, depression for days, get beat up by some gang-bangers, make food - okay, that wasn't bad - get shot, get dead, get beat on by Yang, throw a fight with a bully, get into an argument with you - and that was just Thursday."

"You're too hard on yourself," chided Velvet. "It's been a hard time for you, but you've handled it well."

"That's the dream. But hey, I've been feeling more like my normal self, so we'll see what the future's like. I mean, it can hardly go downhill right?"

We shared a smile, and then a few moments of silence that dragged on just long enough to be awkward before Velvet stood. "Well, it was really nice talking with you-"

"Likewise."

"- but I think I should be going. I have homework to do, and a test coming up, so…"

"Of course," I said, waving it away. "Don't let me keep you from it. Stay in school an all that."

"See you later," said Velvet, going in for a quick hug before pulling away.

"Alright." I walked across the room with her and opened the door, letting her out into the hall. "Have a good night."

"You too." She smiled and gave a little wave before heading off towards her dorm. I watched her go, leaning against the door frame until she scampered out of sight.

"Mmm," I murmured, frozen in place. For a moment I wished that she would have stayed longer and we could have talked more.

But, life dictated it not be so. She had work to do, and I still had to decide what to do about Cardin. I had been visited by the proverbial shoulder angel and devil in the form of Velvet and Coco. No prizes for guessing who was who.

My feet wore a groove into the floor as I paced up and down the length of my dorm room. _Do I go with Velvet or Coco? I know mom would want me to forgive him and take the higher road. I mean, she was kinda disappointed when I fought that one guy even if she understood why I did it._

 _But Cardin needs to be stopped. It's not just Velvet, it's for me, for anyone else that he's bullying._

 _But it's not right._

Like it or not, Velvet had really struck a chord with me. It certainly didn't help that I hadn't felt too confident when I told Coco I'd help her. So why was I having such a hard time letting it go?

 _Because you already got involved on Coco's side when you fought him? And now you don't want that to have been a mistake. So you're holding on to the revenge thing to be philosophically consistent?_

 _It was a crime of passion. The heat of the moment. Let it go. Put it on hold at least and give trying to help Velvet be more assertive a shot._

It took a little while, but I eventually sorted myself out and made my decision to stick with Velvet. Of course this presented me with the issue of having to go back to Coco and tell her I was no longer on board. _How to do that though?_ My fingers hovered over my scroll, tapping out and deleting messages that I might send to the fashionista.

 _Or do I have to? Let's think about this._

 _Based on my observation and what Velvet has said I have little doubt that if I back out Coco will just continue full steam ahead. Coco probably won't leave me in the loop, and eventually Cardin will get hit anyway._

 _If I play along and stay in the loop though, I have a lot more doors open. I have the opportunity to hear the plan. At that point I can still back out if it's too crazy, but if it's not I can "save" Cardin, or help him out. It might not get me in his good graces, but if it does I'm in. I can build up respect and then use my hold on his ear to hopefully curb his bullying._

 _Worst case scenario, which is likely, I end up where I am now and with Coco a little pissed at me. I can take that. Best case, I can focus on a long term solution like Velvet wanted. Or at least I can direct his attentions away from her. That's worth the risk._

With my mind made up I tucked my scroll back in my pocket. It was a risk, but I was confident I could talk my way out of anything, even Coco's ire should it arise. It wasn't an easy choice though. I still wanted to get at Cardin for what he'd done, and badly too.

But let's also look realistically at what I was going to do to him, right? Intimidate him away? He was probably at least six inches taller than my six foot frame, and probably outweighed my one eighty by seventy pounds. And it wasn't fat either. The dude was hella strong. So, considering that, a fight wasn't going to do me much good.

Plus he had three buddies to back him up, so…

Anyway, I could plan out an elaborate prank to humiliate him but how would that help? If he knows it's me he comes after me. Then, see above description. If he doesn't know I pulled it off he goes all the harder after Velvet and others. That wouldn't help.

My only chance likely laid with Coco, who I was turning against to appease a rabbit.

 _When did life get so complicated?_ I yawned tiredly.

It was getting late, and I had an early morning session with Yang so that she could work around her classes. _Dang, I feel bad for her too. Weiss seems like she's working Yang way too hard to begin with, and then I'm adding hours a day to that. I should do something for her._

 _But what?_

I was drawing a blank on ideas and it was too late at night to do anything anyway. I resolved to figure it out in the morning and went and collapsed into a restless sleep.

The next morning I was so happy that I had chosen to get some good rest. Yang worked me to the bone, leaving me tired, sore, and dripping with sweat - and all before nine in the morning. My brunch, which was just eggs, a bagel, peanut butter, and fruit, didn't really feel sufficient enough to fill me up.

I didn't really want to push how much I could eat though, for the same reason that I was loving Yang's brutal training - because I was making _gains_ like nobody's business.

Aura is a hell of a drug kids.

My biceps, triceps, pecs, traps, thighs, calves - you name it, it was bigger, better, and more defined. Oh, and stronger too. That has to count for something, right?

Plus, I was nursing a four pack into existence. Like, legit abs. Yeah, yeah, I know that Yang and everyone else in the building probably had a six pack ever since they were eight years old, but cut me some slack. Let me have my moment, okay? It was the first time in my life they had made themselves visible.

And I was still preening under Coco's comments from before. Don't blame me. Yes it was embarrassing, buuuut being told by an undeniably sexy young woman that you looked good… it was a boost to the good ol' ego.

Like it needed any help.

Most of my breakfast was spent contemplating the awkward kill/don't kill Cardin situation I was in. _Most_ being the operative word. As I was finishing up my meal I was approached by a tall blonde. No, it wasn't Yang. This blonde was taller, scragglier, and infinitely less attractive to me.

"Hey, uhh, Glen, right?" he laughed awkwardly, rubbing at the nape of his neck. "Yeah. You probably don't remember me."

"You were on team JNPR right? Sitting with team Ruby last night. You were… John?"

"Yeah! Well, almost. It's Jaune. Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls of the tongue. Ladies love it." The whole speech, plus the wink that followed it, left me biting my tongue to keep from laughing. Unfortunately Jaune seemed to notice and deflated quickly. "My dad says all you need is a little confidence…"

"It hasn't worked, has it."

"Not so much," Jaune admitted. "But it's gotta be a matter of time."

"Well dude, there's confidence, and then there's being cocky. There's a difference," I chuckled. "But how're you doing?"

"I'm… okay."

"Do you not have class right now? Like, I know team SYBR does."

"No, I do." He saw my slightly raised eyebrow and hurried to explain. "Well, actually, I wanted to talk to you about that. Because I'm not skipping because I want to. I thought you could give me advice-"

"Slow down there cowboy. Context. What is it we're talking about? And why me? You seem like a great guy and all, but we've known each other for five minutes." I had to slow Jaune down because I frankly had no idea what the subject of our discussion was nor why he was talking to me.

"Well, I wanted to ask you about Cardin."

 _Oh holy mother of Mary it's never going to end. Every day five people will ask me about my fight with Cardin. First Coco, then Velvet, an I already had Yang ask me today during sparring. Now Jaune out of the blue? Did fighting Cardin make me a local folk hero?_

"Okay. What did you want to ask?"

"How… how did you do it?" Jaune leaned forward expectantly as I shook my head.

"How did I do what?"

"Stand up to Cardin."

 _There it is._

"I'm… not sure how to answer that," I replied honestly. "I wouldn't normally consider fighting him without the… catalyst of him bullying Velvet making me angry. But I guess the real reason is I'm not afraid of him."

"How can you not be afraid of him?" exclaimed Jaune, gesturing wildly. "He's big, strong, and not afraid to use it."

"Well, I suppose that I believe I outclass him in a lot of areas. I'm pretty sure I'm much more intelligent. I'm very sure that I hold a massive edge in the support that I draw from friends and people I meet in casual conversation. I know I understand people better than he does. And the one area he has a real edge in, strength, I don't fear him for that. I respect his abilities, sure, but I don't fear them."

"But… what if he was smarter? What if he was holding something above your head that you couldn't get rid of?" Jaune seemed almost desperate in his asking, eyes roaming around as if to pluck the answer from the air. "Now you can't fight him and he could ruin your life."

"Okay. So the situation is he's smarter than I give him credit for and he's still physically imposing?" Jaune nodded his confirmation. "Well, that's why understanding people is important. I've established myself as a really nice guy. I'm very charismatic and people genuinely like me. People have the opposite opinion of Cardin pre-established. So I work that in my favor. If it's his word against mine, then I will win every time among the people that know me. I could be telling a bold faced lie and he could be telling the truth, and I would still come out on top. Then the people that I know who believe me have other people that believe them. So the people who believe me spread it to people who believe them and eventually the chain works in my favor, not his. It might be uncomfortable briefly but I don't care about the opinions of people I don't know or respect, and in the end I win regardless. That's why I don't fear him in a social battle. I don't fear his intellect either, because he doesn't understand that."

Jaune sat there quietly, resting his elbows on the table and his hands propping up his head. One could almost hear the gears turning in his head as he processed and digested my rant.

"And I respect his strength because I know he could pull me apart if we fought one on one most likely. But I can rile up enough people to my side to fight him that it doesn't matter. That's why I don't fear it. Again, knowing people is the way to win. You can be an absolute scumbag, but if you know how to work people you can get away with crap for a long time."

The blonde across from me nodded, but still looked uneasy. "But what if - I mean… what if-"

"Hey Jaune," I cut in, pointing my fork at him for emphasis. "I feel like you have a specific situation in mind. Now, I'd love to help you bro, but if you keep throwing vague situations at me I can't do much. I mean, you don't have to tell me what he's blackmailing you with. We're not that close, and I don't want to force that on you. But help me help you dude."

"Well, okay," Jaune agreed after a moment of thought. "Cardin's got something over my head that's really serious. So he's got me under his thumb and I have to do what he wants or else he'll release it and end me."

"What kind of stuff is he having you do?"

"Actually, the whole reason I'm skipping Professor Peach's class right now is so I can talk to you and try to get some work done. He's having me write an essay for him that's due for Oobleck's class. Not to mention he made me fetch him breakfast this morning. And it's only been a day!" Jaune put his head back into his hands. "I don't know what to do Glen."

 _What is it with people and skipping class?_ I wondered privately. Out loud I was much more sympathetic.

"Dang dude, that really sucks. That really does," I sympathized.

"So what can I do?"

"Let me think about it for a second. Grab yourself a drink or something because this could take a minute."

Jaune agreed and moved off to do just that while I thought about Jaune's situation. It was frustrating to be sure, but it didn't generate the same knee jerk reaction Velvet's torment did. _Probably because I don't know him well. Plus, it sounds like he is at least partially responsible for this predicament he's in… but it's not right for Cardin to do that._

 _But what's the angle? What do I tell him?_ My mind whirred through possibilities, not in a sequential fashion but by jumping all over the place like a grasshopper. _I wish I knew what Cardin had on him. That would help a lot, having that information. I don't want to push Jaune though. He took a risk coming and telling me about his problems. So what to do…_

In the end the idea that came to me was an obvious one. "Hey Jaune. Is there a student handbook for Beacon? With policies and stuff?"

"Yeah? There should be. I think it's on the scroll everyone gets." Jaune helped me navigate through the device, and eventually it was found in an email.

"Hmmph," I grunted as I read through the parts that most concerned my ideas. "Well, I have an idea but it's pretty… it'll require commitment, because I don't know where it'll go exactly."

Jaune immediately put down his chocolate milk and leaned in. "What is it?"

"Well, without all the details, the simple idea is we get him on academic probation, suspended, or expelled."

"We could do that?" said Jaune in disbelief. "How?"

"You said he's forcing you to write an essay for him. That falls under Beacon's academic integrity policy which says, and I quote, 'Because of the nature of the job which a hunter or huntress will inherit, Beacon takes the responsibility of students learning all material to a satisfactory level seriously. As such, we have a 'zero tolerance' policy with regards to academic integrity. Any divergence can immediately result in academic probation, suspension, or expulsion depending on the severity of the infraction.' And getting you to write an essay for him is one of those things that is against the rules." I powered down my scroll with satisfaction, impressing even myself with the solution. "Now it would just be a matter of how to do it best to minimize the effect on you and maximize our odds of Cardin taking a fall."

"Wow, that's… crazy," said Jaune hesitantly. "I could get him kicked out? I don't… I don't know if I can do that."

I just shrugged in response, not giving council either way. "Yeah, I don't know Jaune. I've never done anything on this magnitude. But I tell you what, I really disliked him before this conversation and this has only added to that opinion. I wouldn't be sad to see him gone or in hot water."

"I just don't know if I can ruin someone's dreams like that." Jaune looked troubled, his hands wringing together and milk sitting forgotten in front of him. "What if he worked really hard to get here because he wants it and he just made a mistake? I can't just take that away from him."

 _That… doesn't make sense. He was desperate for a solution but now he's sympathizing with Cardin. I think he's projecting. If I push him towards it-_ At that moment I was hit with a moment of conviction that caused a small knot in my chest.

 _Wow. That took all of a couple hours for me to go from agreeing with Velvet to basically going back to Coco's side. Am I really that vengeful?_

 _Don't worry about it,_ the vengeful side of me said. _This isn't like teaming up with Coco. This isn't vigilante justice. He's done something wrong, and we're letting the authorities sort that out._

I wasn't _wrong_ per se, but I myself was conflicted over whether to go for it or not. Jaune's own internal conflict just fed my own, and all I could do once again was raise my shoulders in a shrug. "I guess dude. Keep in mind getting him expelled is the most extreme option and probably unlikely. But I guess I can think of something else, or you're just going to have to lie your way out of it. Does anyone besides Cardin know?"

"Well, I told Pyrrha and he overheard," Jaune replied miserably. "So she does too."

"Why don't you get her to help you?" I enquired curiously.

"We had a… bit of a falling out. We argued, and we're not really speaking right now."

"So apologize. Take the blame for it, tell her it's your fault, and explain why whatever happened happened. Just be honest. She seems like a nice girl."

Jaune winced visibly, his face struggling to find some expression that matched his internal fight. "I can't… I can't do that right now."

 _Come on. Swallow your pride and do it,_ I moaned internally.

"If you feel that way, I guess. I'll keep thinking. But keep in mind that if you're going to discredit Cardin's blackmail, you need Pyrrha in your corner," I warned him.

"Yeah yeah," he muttered. "I guess. Well, thanks anyway Glen."

"For sure. And keep me updated too so I can help you out. Can we swap numbers?" I held out my scroll to Jaune and he took it, punching in some contact information before sliding it back. "Sweet. Hey, tell me a bit about you."

"Like what?" he asked.

"I dunno. Any hobbies outside of slaying demons?" I chuckled a little, and Jaune nodded his head.

"I guess I like playing the guitar, and I-"

"Dude, you play the guitar?" I interrupted in almost childish excitement. "Did you bring one with you to Beacon?"

"Yeah."

"Oh man!" My grin was wide enough to split my face open as I clapped my hands together. "That's awesome! We've got to get together and jam sometime dude. That's so cool. How good are you?"

"I've been playing for about five years now," admitted Jaune, starting to smile back in the face of my enthusiasm.

"That's sweet bro. I only played for a couple of months before I came here, but I know a good amount of chords and can fingerstyle a couple songs. Dude, you wouldn't mind teaching me some stuff, would you?"

"I guess I could," he grinned. "It would be fun to have someone to play with."

"We should definitely do that sometime." I stood, picking up my plate and utensils. "Well, be in touch okay Jaune? I hope I can help you out dude, but good luck."

"Thanks Glen."

I watched the retreating form, armor plating sitting awkwardly over his hoodie. Jaune seemed a little lighter on his feet, but the hands shoved deep into his pockets and head hunched over betrayed his feelings.

 _Now all I have to contend with is appeasing Velvet, Coco, and balancing how Jaune fits into all that. And also I probably want to avoid Cardin. And I still have training with Yang. Cripes, it's worse than high school. At least then I made a habit of avoiding conflict and drama, not inserting myself into the middle of it._

 _But hey, at least I can play the guitar now, right? Right. Because that is worth it._

That I was truly enthused about. I had picked up the guitar a few months before the disaster that had brought me to Remnant and absolutely adored it. It just added an extra layer to my love for music. Besides, it's more socially appropriate to play the guitar and sing in public rather than just busting out into song randomly.

Because what kind of weirdo does that?

This weirdo does. It actually became a really bad habit to the point where I could hum a tune through an entire conversation and not even realize I was doing it. Eventually my mom convinced me it was a social faux pas, and that curbed it - but still. The moral of the story is, guitars make everything better.

I was lost in the possibilities of playing the guitar, miming chords in the air and humming to myself as I wandered slowly back to the dorm. Which was a mistake that I probably shouldn't have made. I mean, come on. Five minutes ago I recognized that I probably needed to avoid Cardin, and then I walk straight into him. What an idiot, right?

"Hey there Glenny. It's so good to see you again." The bully cracked his knuckles and deliberately moved into my path as I tried to walk around him. "You've got to pay for what you did."

I sighed heavily and tilted my head to look the larger man dead in the eye. "Maybe we could not do this Cardin? I mean, let's be reasonable here. You were hurting a friend, and I stepped in. I was upset and I shouldn't have jumped on you. Sorry about that. Now can we move on and just leave each other be?" My apology wasn't very apologetic, but that was a deliberate choice. A full on apology would no doubt just look like fear to him, and I didn't want that. Unfortunately, Cardin wasn't in a reasonable mood.

"You humiliated me," growled the gorilla. My adrenaline was already spiking, prepared for a fight. "Now it's our turn. Grab him boys!"

At this I prepared to sprint away much like I had in our first encounter, not liking my odds. Before I could however, strong hands grabbed at both of my shoulders from behind. I had been out-played thanks to my ignorance, and now I was really in trouble.

I quickly grabbed one of the wrists grabbing at me and dropped to a knee, throwing my attacker flat onto his back. There was an audible 'oof' as the grey-themed bully slammed into the ground. Knowing I had multiple attackers around me, I wasted no time in throwing myself after him.

My elbow came around with all the force of my body behind it to land squarely in his face, bouncing his head off the ground as I threw two more hammer fists into the boy's nose.

Within seconds more hands were grabbing at me and hauling me backwards. Standing as quickly as I could as blows rained down on my back, I blindly charged and grabbed another one of the bullies. Wrapping one arm around him and the other hooking the back of his knee, I drove the smaller man backwards in a rugby tackle. He stumbled for balance until after only a few steps he slammed into the wall. I then yanked back hard on both legs and dropped him to the ground, passing his guard easily into full mount. Just before I could posture up and start raining blows down on the green mohawked bully, I went weightless.

Cardin was, to put it simply, even stronger than his frame would suggest. The first thing to impact the wall was my head as the ringleader flung me bodily across the hallway. I barely managed to keep my aura up as I hit, which did soften much of the blow, but even so I was slow to get up after I dropped to the ground.

By that time it was too late. Cardin had a hold of one of my arms and the tan themed one had my other as they began to frog march me away from my dorm room.

"Not so strong now, are you?" Cardin's chest seemed to swell in satisfaction with having me in his clutches.

"I never claimed to be strong," I snarked, which was about all I could do. Struggling to pull out of Cardin's grasp was as pointless as a kitten trying to get away from a gorilla. Not that our strength was that far apart, but you get the idea. No matter how much I struggled I was going to stay firmly in his grasp. "But it's pretty easy to win when it's four against one. How's that nose holding up grey dude?"

The grey member of Cardin's posse was sporting a laceration on the bridge of his nose and above his right eye, with long grey hair stuck to the latter. Considering the effectiveness of aura, I was pretty proud of those results. He glared at me and I winked back, content with the knowledge that I would've beat him in a fight.

 _And mohawk kid too._

"You're not a huntsman, are you?" asked Cardin ominously.

"You aren't either," I shot back. "You're still in training."

"But you're not even training to be one," said Cardin. "You're just a civilian who happens to have aura. Well, just because you have aura doesn't mean that you are at our level. You're beneath us."

"Mhmm," I agreed sarcastically as I was pulled into an empty classroom. "I guess that's why I was beneath grey dude and mohawk. Wait, that doesn't seem right…ohh yeah, because I was on top."

Me running my mouth was probably not the best decision, but what was realistically going to make this better? Crying and begging? Being stoic and silent?

Probably not the latter, and definitely not the former. The one advantage to this was that I got to inflict verbal damage and Cardin got to see that I wasn't really scared. _Because what is he going to do, really? Rough me up a little? Lock me in a classroom? I don't care about either of those._

I should know better than to tempt fate, shouldn't I? Because fate is the most competitive bastard to ever exist. 'Oh, you think I can't? Hold mah beer, it's about to get worse.'

It was at this point in the proceedings that I began to take in my surroundings. The classroom we were in looked much like a lecture hall, with tiers of desks and chairs ringing a semicircle around the floor. In that not insubstantial floor space was an enormous box. It was this box that we drew closer to as I was marched down the stairs.

"You ever seen a Grimm up close?" Cardin asked with a malicious grin and a sing-songy tone. His hand tightened on my bicep as we approached the floor. I didn't respond, and that was perhaps all the answer he needed. "Well, as luck would have it Professor Port keeps a few around for training. He's kind of a nut if you ask me, but it gives us this great opportunity."

My heart rate spiked a little as a knot began forming in my stomach. My mind brought up the terrifying images of red eyes and white bone gleaming the darkness, and my insides tossed and turned.

The cage rattled.

"You know Grimm sense negativity, right?" Cardin grinned as the cage began to rock harder. "Looks like it senses your fear. But you're not scared, right? Come on, give me a clever little insult. I'm waiting."

For once I had no words as I was wheeled out in front of the cage. There, no more than a few feet from me, a Grimm stood with naught but a padlock and metal bars between us.

For those that have never had the pleasure of staring a Grimm down, I'll do my best to help you with the visuals.

The sight was horrifying in itself. The white plating and spikes stood out in horrifying relief, like you were looking at the bone sticking out of a compound fracture. The tough skin was black as night and almost seemed to radiate darkness and malevolence. But the eyes… the deep red eyes were the worst. They fixated on me with a hunger and intensity I would never understand, a trail of blood seeming to follow their every move.

I've seen bears, wolves, cougars, and other dangerous wild animals in person out in nature. They're scary, sure, but most of them have a reason for what they do and you can avoid, frighten, or fight them if it comes to it.

This was unlike that. The Grimm wasn't out to guard territory, or it's offspring, or the deer it killed. It's soul purpose was to kill me, and to that end it would never stop hunting me.

All this made a being so terrifying and otherworldly, so wrong, I felt fear begin to consume me.

And the worst part was it _understood_ my terror and began to throw itself at the cage all the harder in its desperation to quench my life.

"Oh come on Glenny," mocked Cardin. "It's just a Creep. You didn't know that?"

I still couldn't answer. My mind was in overdrive, trying to find a way to survive. My body tried to help by increasing the sensory input, but that left little processing power for witty remarks. The world was just a blur of information that needed to be responded to and Cardin's jibes currently ranked way far down the list.

My body thrashed and kicked out with more force than ever, but I couldn't stop as Cardin dragged me closer.

"Come on, let's get a good look shall we? Just so you can identify the next one you see."

In a final act of desperation I planted my feet on the cage to keep myself away, but Cardin just dropped my upper body so I fell to the floor. I kicked off with my feet to send me sliding back, but Cardin quickly grabbed me to stop that.

In the end I fought hard enough that even Cardin and his tan pal couldn't contain me - but having the grey goon and mohawk join in allowed the bullies to achieve their aim of shoving me against the cage.

At this the Grimm went nuts, throwing itself at the walls as I continued to scream and struggle with all my strength. Try as it might, the raptor-like creature couldn't fit it's head through the bars to bite me, and it had no arms to speak of that could grab me.

A long pink tongue reached out and slowly moved up and down my face. I tried to move away as a rancid, slimy substance coated me but the gang just held me there with Cardin laughing.

"Hey look Glen, it likes you!" he chortled.

Finally, I felt the pressure from most of the group begin to release - and I took it. With a scream of defiance I wrenched myself around, elbows up to connect with more than a few jaws and cheeks. My shirt was practically torn to shreds by the opposing forces, but that simply allowed me to escape that much easier.

I lashed out with my hands and feet, kicking, punching, scratching, and tearing at anything I could get in contact with. Jarring blows ran up my arms and legs as I got tangled up with my tormentors, limbs still firing away.

I grabbed one of them and lifted him, sweeping a leg and driving him as hard as I could headfirst into the ground. Once again though, fighting four people took its toll as I was torn away from my victim. A few more exchanged blows later and I was thrown skittering across the floor with aura depleted.

"Nice try," gloated Cardin as I stood shakily. "But you're beneath us. We are the ones who are protecting you. Without us you're dead. Nothing. Gone. You understand?"

I stood before the group, teeth grinding together as I stared into each one of their eyes. The one with the mohawk at least had the decency to dip his gaze away and look somewhat ashamed.

"Cardin," was all I could choke out. My voice absolutely trembled with rage and emotion, causing it to break as I spoke.

"That's the name. And don't forget it," he laughed, high-fiving the grey haired one. "Look at him. I think he pissed his pants he was so scared. Come on boys. I think our work is done here."

With that the posse turned and left, leaving me standing there in shock. I trembled with fear that just as quickly turned itself into rage. I was so full of emotion that tears ran down my face uncommanded. Fighting them back, I waited until they had mostly stopped. Despite the tears being gone, there were still intermittent tremors that wracked my form.

 _Get a hold of yourself,_ I growled, slapping my arms. _GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF. This is not going to be another pistol incident. No PTSD or whatever. FACE IT._

The Grimm continued to thrash in its cage as I turned towards it and stared it down. I did so shakily at first, but the longer I took it in the more solid I became. Every feature, every bone and limb was studied by my roving eyes as I forced myself to get used to the nightmare in front of me. Miming holding a pistol, I emptied rounds into the beast over and over again until something in me was satisfied.

"You don't scare me," I whispered softly. "None of you do."

One thing was for sure. Any conflict in me had been removed as cleanly as if a surgeon had used a scalpel.

 _You screwed up Cardin,_ I grinned maniacally towards the closed door. _You though scaring me would be the end of it. But you're just making me tougher for it. I don't just get mad. I get even._

The bully had fit the final nail in his coffin. His hurting Velvet had me hanging from a tenuous thread. Blackmailing Jaune had frayed it. But this has sheared it through altogether.

 _Okay Cardin. Okay._ I marched my way out of the classroom. _I underestimated you a little when I didn't know how far you were willing to go. But you have made the same mistake. The difference is, I'm not going to let you realize it until it's too late._

The game was set, and I was on the warpath.

 **A/N: So I'd been looking at this story, reading back over it, and I kept seeing errors or things I could have done better. Like, why the hell did Ozpin tell team CFVY? Why didn't he just say, "Yo, take care of this kid?" That would have made so much more sense right? And why did everyone on Remnant who knows accept the truth so fast? Like, damn dude. I guess I was so focused on what** _ **Glen**_ **was going through and making him realistic I didn't think about what the others would maybe react like. A crime of impatience, I'm sure - but it's still frustrating to me to read back over. But it would have made sense and provided more options for potential conflict.**

 **And then there's some points that aren't even serious but would have been fun. Like if Coco had continue to try and play matchmaker for Velvet because she thought that she was interested in Glen, that whole misunderstanding.**

 **Then there's a whole host of other things I spotted but won't mention for sake of length and not shredding my story to pieces too much. But it kinda discouraged me and threw me off for a while.**

 **Not to mention college is whack, yo. So much to do, and now I'm flying planes, and all sorts of crazy stuff.**

 **But my biggest issue was I had no idea how I was going to work Glen into the Jaundice arc. I know what I want to do after, but not during, and that threw me off. Not to mention I felt like the pacing was too slow, yada yada yada.**

 **But now I have ideas for DAYS. And they are big, and changing up some of what I wanted to do, but in a good way. I'm going to have fun with this, and hopefully you guys will appreciate what I have in store.**

 **Apologies if there are mistakes or if it feels rushed. I scraped the other 7,000 word chapter last week when I finally hit my ideas and totally rewrote this 9000+ word monstrosity.**

 **Special t** **hanks to Bomberguy789 for catalyzing me back into action on this story.**

 **Much love to you all, and I'll see you on the flip side.**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Hooray! It's more like three weeks instead of three months! And boy is college still hella busy. Oh well. Enjoy, enjoy. Please. Please? I beg of you.**

Information, and accurate information at that, is vital to any plan. When you have all the cards in front of you you can plan for every contingency so no matter what the opposition does it plays into your hand. That was my first stop, the first key for a door I needed open. This key just happened to take the form of a very attractive redhead who I luckily found on her own.

"Hey Pyrrha!" I smiled and waved at the Mistrali champion. What, surprised I knew who she was now? Yeah, hours of trolling the RemNet (still can't get over the name) to learn about this world had eventually led me to that discovery. "How're you doing?"

"I'm doing well, thank you Glen," she replied courteously. "Are you okay after what happened with Cardin yesterday?"

"Yeah," I nodded, adding in a little sigh. "I'm okay. I probably could have handled it better, but it just really upset me to see Velvet being bullied."

"Don't feel guilty Glen. I'm ashamed I didn't have to courage to do something myself."

"It wasn't courage so much as anger," I chuckled. "And don't be so hard on yourself. But thank you Pyrrha. I appreciate that."

"So, how is your training with Yang going?" Pyrrha asked, looking at me intently.

"Oh man, it's nuts. I've learned so much in such a short time. Yang is just got some next level martial ability going on that I can't hope to match, but she's a good teacher."

"I'm sure you'll get there soon," the redhead encouraged me.

"Maybe," I grinned. "I feel like my skills are getting comparable-ish, but in different areas. Like, I can't fight her in a straight kickboxing match. She's better than I am there, so what I have to do is take her to the ground and tie her up. But every time I'm about to get an advantage, she gets this ridiculous burst of strength and just rag dolls me. So, you tell me."

"Well, it is her semblance," she said.

"What, super strength?"

"Almost," Pyrrha explained. "She can take the impacts she has absorbed and add that to her power hitting back."

"So hitting her makes her stronger?" I said in disbelief. "That is so bogus."

"Bogus?" giggled Pyrrha, hiding her hand behind her mouth as if her smile would offend me.

"Yeah, you got a problem with that?" I challenged.

"No! Of course not. I've just … never heard someone say that." Pyrrha did her best to look sincere and apologetic, but my next sentence ruined that composure.

"It's because you're not living the radical life dudette. Ride the wave, man. Go with the flow. It's totally tubular."

Pyrrha giggled again, which just fed my laughter, and the whole circle went around for a moment before we gained our composure back.

"Oh man," I grinned, wiping a pretend tear from my eye. "That's good. But, well, there is something I wanted to talk to you about if you don't mind."

"Of course Glen! What did you want to ask?"

My mouth opened slightly as I hesitated, knowing that I was about to take a risk. _Hey, no risk no reward._

"It's… about Jaune." At the mention of her teammates name Pyrrha's face fell slightly. She recovered quickly, but I saw enough. _They did have a falling out and it's not fixed. I'm going to have to be real touchy about this._ "He came and told me about his problem, and about his argument with you. I want to help him, but I also wanted to be able to hear your side of it. If that's okay, of course. I don't want to pry. It'd just be helpful."

I stood back a second as Pyrrha visibly considered what she would tell me. My fingers crossed as I prayed she would open up; I had done all that I could have in my opening gambit.

A little tip for those who care: First make them think you already know what's going on, so they believes telling you isn't a risk. Throw in the 'you don't have to' to make it look like you don't need to know. This hopefully makes them believe you are more concerned with them rather than information gathering and hopefully give them more reason to trust you.

 _Will she take the bait though?_

"What was his story?" Pyrrha asked.

I panicked internally for a second as I pulled a response out of my butt. "He's really hard on himself about the whole thing. I think he really just need someone to… help him out, you know?" Pyrrha, I assumed, was fishing more for what he had said about _her_ rather than looking for a play-by-play. People always want to know about themselves. So I put something in that placed her in a good position, hopefully to make her more willing to want to help Jaune.

From what I've gathered self-flagellation seems like it wouldn't be out of character for the blonde knight, so I felt like I was moving in a safe direction.

"I thought so too," sighed Pyrrha. One arm reached across her body to the other elbow as the champion drew into herself. "All I did was offer to help him train and get stronger, like Yang is doing for you. But he just rejected me like I was trying to hurt him."

 _Okay, that theme worked. We're getting somewhere with it, so let's stick to it._

"He just thinks he needs to do it all on his own. Jaune just… feels like he needs to prove himself."

 _Improv and social skills, don't fail me now. Take the bait. Take it._

"I can see why," Pyrrha nodded. "He never was the strongest fighter in the class, but I didn't expect him to have forged his transcripts."

 _Damn. That's pretty big._ My eyes widened a little in surprise, but I forced myself to keep going smoothly. "It was a surprise to me too."

"And I tried to tell him that it didn't matter to me. I wanted to help him reach his dream, but he just threw it back at me like I couldn't understand," Pyrrha whispered, clearcly hurt.

"I'm sorry to hear that," I sympathized, putting a gentle hand on her bare shoulder. "It's not your fault; you were being a really good friend to him. I know he regrets it but he's just having a hard time right now."

So maybe I took a few liberties with the truth, but sue me, okay? It's for a good cause.

"Thanks Glen," Pyrrha smiled. "I hope so."

"Hey, I'll be talking with him okay?"

"Okay."

"And is it cool if I swing by your guy's room to hang out sometimes?"

"Sure! I'd love that, and I'm sure the others would too. I know Nora would jump at the opportunity," The champion laughed lightly.

"I don't know if I could survive getting to know Nora," I admitted jokingly. "But thanks."

"I'll be sure to tell her to be gentle," Pyrrha smiled, the skin around her emerald eyes crinkling.

"I'd be much obliged, I assure you. Well, I don't want to keep you for too long…"

"Of course! It's been a pleasure. It was nice to talk to you Glen."

"You too." With a little wave me and Pyrrha parted ways, heading off to our respective rooms. _Yes. Heck yes,_ I celebrated, pumping my fist back and forth.

The conversation had gone as well as I had hoped and accomplished several key things. First, Pyrrha has given up the nature of what Jaune was being blackmailed with. Secondly I had managed to plant some seeds of sympathy in Pyrrha that would hopefully make it easier to forgive Jaune.

On the downside Jaune wasn't kidding when he said it was serious. I wasn't so desperate to get back at Cardin that I would sacrifice a friend, so this would take a little bit of thinking. Once I had a plan I could push Jaune to accept it, and then I needed him to apologize and have Pyrrha on board.

Aside from the planning, there were two parts that could be completed without Jaune being involved. The first was talking to Pyrrha, which was a little risky and stressful because of the lies. The next one involved lies too, but I was much more excited for it. Why? Because it involved Cardin directly of course.

 _This is the same day though,_ I grimaced. _It'd be weird if I sought him out over this just a few hours after he terrorized me. Then again, a reasonable amount of time is too long for me to wait._

I had texted Jaune earlier and found out that I had essentially Friday, the weekend, and Monday to sort out the essay. I didn't know what Cardin was doing over the weekend and I didn't want to put the pressure on by trying to make it work - so what choice did I have really?

 _Okay. How am I going to act so that Cardin will buy into it?_ I pondered on the question briefly.

 _I can't just be scared and intimidated. If I was that scared I wouldn't approach him. But if I'm my normal self I doubt he'll do anything for me. So I can't go in too confident. So how to toe the line?_

Moderation is key, but it's _how_ you show it that makes the difference. I can't just run in and be bipolar between confident and cowed. I decided on acting like I still had a confident facade, but any time I got challenged I crumbled towards being afraid. The image of a man who was trying to prove he wasn't scared but wasn't quite successful.

See, that's believable. Now I just had to find Cardin and convince him. Unfortunately for me, Cardin proved himself harder to find than Pyrrha. How difficult could it be to actively locate six five giant who swaggers around like he owns the joint?

Pretty darn impossible, actually. Fending off messages from my female friends as to what I was doing for dinner, I did a stakeout of the cafeteria to find Cardin. It took a while, along boring while, but he arrived with his friends and sat down at a table.

 _Nice. Now I just have to wait until they leave._

So there I was, the infamous private eye, Investigator Glen Foray. It had been a long day and I had no leads save for a single individual whom I had found at a restaurant he frequented. Now all that was left was to wait for my opportunity to grab the suspect.

It was a stakeout. It's not a glorious job, just sitting around and watching a group while trying not to be noticed. It's actually fairly dull. The most interesting part was when team CFVY entered the building and I had to avoid detection by both them and CRDL.

Sure I could have joined CFVY and just bugged out when necessary, but that increases the chance of Cardin noticing me. I didn't want that, because he could choose to engage me at any time and that would just likely complicate matters. What if Velvet was suspicious of why I had to leave so quickly? Or Coco? Or what if if Cardin did come over? I couldn't talk about what I wanted to in mixed company. Instead it was better to take out as many variables as I could by staying out of it.

 _Ahh crap._ I snapped my fingers in disappointment as a realization sunk in. _Of course. Take out as many variables as possible. I'm going to want Cardin alone. Him being with his posse creates more witnesses that can corroborate his story in the future, which I would love to avoid. I need to keep it his word against mine._

So, as it turns out, my whole investigation for the day had been for naught. Cardin wasn't going to leave his group just for me. Today wouldn't be my opportunity to pull off my acting stunt.

 _Dang it. How to get him alone? That's the question now._

Reluctantly I slipped away from the pillar I was leaning on and made my way over to my friends. As I approached, I saw that both team SYBR and CFVY had joined together and were chatting amongst themselves.

"Hey Glen! Did you get my messages?" Yang waved me down as I sat next to her on the bench. "Where've you been?"

"I was just in my room watching a documentary about the Great War on my scroll. It's some interesting stuff. Sorry that I didn't respond," I smiled apologetically.

"Well, you arrived just in time. Coco was just about to tell us all about how my training is paying off in vivid detail."

I frowned slightly at that, confused as why Coco was talking about my training rather than Yang. "But I haven't ever sparred with Coco, or… done anything with her that would involve my training."

"Are you sure?" Coco looked suggestively at me, which only increased my confusion.

"I'm not sure what you're insinuating…" I said, until the dots connected in my head in spectacular fashion. "Oh. Oh no no no, Coco. No you don't!"

"Oh yes yes yes," the fashionista fired back, sending a sly wink my way.

"What's going on?" asked Velvet curiously, sitting down with a tray full of food.

Immediately I felt my face begin to flush red once again and I began to lunge across the table. "Coco don't you dare hnngggg," I groaned and folded over back into my chair. An unexpected elbow from Yang had caught me right below the ribs, knocking the wind out of me.

"Shhhh," the blonde brawler hushed me. "I want to hear this."

"Like I was saying," continued Coco dryly with absolutely no regard for my protestations. "I'm just sitting there waiting to talk to him, and here he comes out of the bathroom with nothing but a towel on. Shock of my life, I tell you. But he has been slimming down and filling out nicely Yang, so props on that. Really nice arms and chest, I'll say that much. It's a shame I didn't get a better look at the lower half. I give him a... seven out of ten."

"Hate you," I wheezed to a duet of laughter, probably at how red my face was - though whether more of that was from Yang's surprise attack or my embarrassment I have no idea. "Hate you both."

Velvet and Ruby seemed to be the only one who shared in my mortification. Both of the girls faces shared a blush, with pink dusting the bunny's cheeks and a deep scarlet covered the red reaper. "Coco!" Velvet admonished in horror. "Stop it!"

"Yeah, not so much of the guy talk around my poor sister," Yang joined in, wagging an accusatory finger at the leader of team CFVY.

"Oh please," I said weakly, shooting Yang a pointed glance. "You brought this on yourself Yang. Who encouraged her, exactly? It wasn't me. I was stopped by someone."

"It is an inappropriate topic, particularly in mixed company," Weiss put in with some superiority. "Wouldn't you agree Blake?"

"Hmm?" The raven-haired beauty looked up from the book she was buried in, amber eyes flickering around the group. "Yes. Most scandalous." Blake's dead tone of voice indicated she couldn't care less about what was going on, and just wanted to return to her reading.

That didn't deter Weiss from taking her agreement and running with it. "See?" she proclaimed haughtily. "You shouldn't engage in such crude talk."

"Oh shove it ice queen," said Coco with a roll of her eyes. "If you're contesting the ruling of a seven, just know that it would have been higher if he shaved off some of his body hair."

"Okay, that's just not fair," I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose. "We all have our crosses to carry. Mine just makes me more of a man."

"I wasn't aware that chest hair made you more of a man." Coco raised an eyebrow as Yang reached over to clamp her hands over Ruby's ears despite the scythe-wielders protestations.

"More of a manly man, yes. I am the manliest man. Such masculinity. Very body hair. Much testosterone. Find me a tree to chop down," I deadpanned. "And then I'm going to eat a steak and grow my beard out a foot by grunting and catching a shark with my bear hands."

"It makes you more like an ursa," laughed Coco. "Not more of a man."

"Yang gets the joke." I thumbed my finger at the blonde, who was chuckling to herself as she watched me and Coco go back and forth.

"Coco!" Velvet pleaded with her teammate. The faunus' face had steadily transitioned from pink to red as her hands covered her eyes. "Stop it!"

"Listen Coco," I forged ahead. "We've all hit puberty. It's just that your chest and my chest got affected differently, but do you hear me complaining about it?"

"Glen!" Velvet said in shock, sparing me a sideways glance as if to confirm that her four ears weren't deceiving her.

"You noticed?" Coco raised one eyebrow and clasped her hands behind her, leaning forward over the table to emphasize a particular part of her anatomy.

I froze for a second before I bounced my eyes quickly towards the heavens. Not those heavens. The ceiling. "Ohhhkay. That's a turn of events. Think of the kids," I finished, gesturing at Ruby, who now had her ears and eyes closed by Yang. The elder sibling was barely managing to keep her hands in place in some sort of pseudo- wrestling match as Ruby attempted to free herself. "Behave yourself."

"Fine," Coco aquesed, sitting back and flipping her hair behind her. "But only because you asked nicely."

"Yaaanng! What was that all about?" complained Ruby as her older sister released her.

"You'll understand when you're older," Yang explained without saying anything.

"I am older Yang!" Ruby crossed her arms and pouted, which I found adorable. "I told you, I drink milk! What did I miss?"

"Nothing worth repeating," said Weiss icily, narrowing her eyes at Coco. "Don't concern yourself with it Ruby."

"Sorry about that," Coco said, tossing the apology casually towards Yang and ignoring Weiss entirely. "It's just too much fun to watch Glen squirm."

"Not to mention entertaining," grinned Yang, reaching out to the fashionista for a high-five.

"Why are you encouraging her? You were just trying to get her to stop and now you… whatever?" I threw my hands out in confusion, not sure of what to make of this latest development.

"Yep."

"Why?"

"Because it's hilarious."

"Great," I groaned. "My nightmare hath become a reality from which I shall never awake."

"What nightmare?" inquired Yang, a spoon hanging out of her mouth.

"You two, together, using your powers to tease and abuse me, helpless as I am."

"Helpless?" snorted Coco. "You? Hardly."

"You're right," I sighed dramatically. "Maybe I'm just not used to having a challenge and it takes two of you to match one of me."

Coco just put on a smug smile. "Making my point, Foray."

"Uhmm, excuse me. Did you just call me a nightmare?" Suddenly I found Yang holding a gleaming metal object to my throat. Never had a spoon looked more threatening than it did at that moment.

"My mistake," I replied diplomatically, sliding the spoon away with a single finger. "What I meant to say was you are a golden haired vision of perfection. Silly me. The words 'nightmare' and 'angel' are just so close together."

"Apology accepted," Yang nodded with a flourish, removing the blunt instrument of my death.

Suddenly two strong arms wrapped around me from behind. The hands crossed and made their way over to each of my biceps and began to squeeze as a chin came down to rest on my shoulder.

"Oh hey there Fox," I said calmly. "Find anything you like?"

The pressure eased and I turned to face the blind hunter. Fox just grinned and flexed a bicep, pointed to my arm, and gave me a wink and a thumbs up.

"Aww thanks babe," I replied, blowing him a kiss. "You always know just what to say. You know, you've got a hot bod, I have a hot bod - we were made for each other."

Fox caught the kiss and pretended to swoon before returning to his seat. His silent chuckle made me grin as the rest of the table looked on in various stages of amusement or surprise.

"Okay, really?" Coco stared me down, crossing her arms under her breasts. "You'll flirt with Fox of all people but not me?"

"It's easy with him," I explained. "We're just messing around."

Fox leaned in and ran a finger down his face like a tear.

"That's not what I mean babe. You're beautiful to me." I made a heart with my hands which Fox mirrored before he broke it in half. "No baby! Say it's not so." I tried to get through it with a straight face but just ended up choking on my laughter.

"See?" gestured Coco. "That's exactly what I'm talking about!"

"It's because we're just joking!" I protested. "It's not serious."

"If you can do it here you could have done it just a second ago. Or in your room yesterday."

"I think there are a whole boatload of qualifiers that need to be attached to _that_ assumption Coco."

Coco and I bickered back and forth with Yang occasionally inserting herself until we exhausted that avenue of conversation. Then I turned to Ruby and Velvet to ask about them and how they'd been doing. The whole dinner was just simple conversation and mindless banter; a refreshing mental break from my scheming and the stress of the day.

Eventually we all broke up and headed our separate ways and for a moment it seemed like everyone left a little lighter. Of course, my mission dropped back on me quickly as I attempted to figure out what I needed to do to get one-on-one with Cardin.

The problem was that I didn't have a good answer. Every solution was contingent on chance to a higher degree than I would like. I mean, good at manipulating conversations as I was, I didn't think there was any way I could get Cardin by himself.

 _Maybe he meets with Jaune one on one and I can tag along?_ I considered the idea briefly before relegating it to a backup strategy. _I'd want to have Jaune onboard for that, but then I'd have to push him towards it. That's riskier than waiting a while to ask him. Cruel as it is, the longer Jaune suffers under Cardin the more likely he is to go along with my proposal._

With limited options, I decided on a course of action. In short, I became a stalker.

The following day I waited outside of every class that Cardin took, lurking like a kraken waiting for a ship to leave harbor. I mean, the man has to go to the bathroom at some point, right? And even if he wanted to bring his friends (which would be… odd) I was hedging my bets that the teacher wouldn't allow that.

There was a lot of unknown and chance but I figured Cardin would rather go during class than between classes. It would allow him to escape a lecture, which seems consistent with his character. Even if he didn't really need to go I figured he'd fake it just to leave at some point.

So, after Yang beat me to a pulp in the morning, I showered up and began my wait. And I waited. And waited. Throughout the morning, throughout lunch, and into the afternoon I snuck around with no success to speak of.

He didn't leave in Professor Peach's class, wasn't called up to fight during Professor Goodwitch's class, and didn't need to go at lunch. On the plus side, it gave me the time to work through a million and one different conversations that I could have with the bully.

 _Geez,_ I groaned internally as I fiddled with my scroll for want of something to do. _Does he have an iron bladder? Is he dehydrated? Does he have a catheter? What is it with this guy?_

For now it seemed Murphy's Law was in full effect, keeping my quarry from me. The funny thing about Murphy's Law though is it can swing both ways. The last class of the afternoon just so happened to be Professor Port's, and I'd heard enough horror stories to know what that meant. If it was going to happen ever, it was going to be now.

I watched the lecture doors that I had been dragged through just a day ago with a nervous anticipation. _Is it ironic that this classroom is being used as the basis for two ambushes?_ I wondered as I waited.

There were several false alarms as various students left the classroom, but finally my patience was rewarded. Cardin finally walked out of the doors with his usual swagger and turned towards the restrooms.

 _Finally,_ I grinned. _The game begins._

I waited as my target moved around a corner, and I followed once he had gone around it. The bathroom was just down that hallway, that I knew; now after waiting for the better part of a day I simply had to contain myself for a few moments longer.

As Cardin left the bathroom I made my move, coming around the corner directly into his sight.

 _Engage me. Engage me please,_ I begged internally. Of course, I could always initiate, but it would be better if Cardin believed it was his idea.

"Hey Glenny," Cardin smirked, jumping on the opportunity to get in my grill.

 _Okay. Predictable part down, difficult part coming up._

"Hey Cardin," I growled, allowing some of my anger from the day before to rise.

"Check the attitude, _civilian_ ," sneered the bully.

"Oh yeah? Or what? You're going to feed me to a Grimm? Make me write your papers like you did to Jaune?"

 _The bait is set…_

"What do you know about Jauney-boy?" Cardin said, taking a step in and shoving me backwards. "Huh?"

 _And hook, line, and sinker._ I made sure to stumble a little as I recovered to give Cardin an illusion of power. "I know what you've got on him. I know you're making him write you an essay. And I know you're an asshole," I taunted.

"You better not snitch, or there'll be real consequences for you and your pal Jauney. Understand?" The gorilla cracked his knuckles and stared me down to make his ridiculous point.

"Yeah, I got it," I said, rolling my eyes. "Don't worry. Even if it's not for me, I'm not going to sell a friend out."

"You better not, Glen. And I told you to check that attitude!" On the final word. Cardin threw a punch going straight for my gut.

After spending weeks training with Yang, I was getting close to being able to read her movements and see when she would attack. Cardin, while brutally strong, was nowhere near Yang's level. As if throwing it at the end of a sentence wasn't obvious enough, I could tell that it was coming by how he shifted his weight. I could also see that it was a feint and not something I would need to react to.

That's not the character I was playing though. Instead I flinched and curled up, bracing for an expected shot that never came. Uncoiling myself slowly, I peeked out as if unsure whether or not the blow was about to hit.

"That's what I thought, little bitch. Now apologize."

"For what?"

"For thinking you're my equal. For being nothing more than Grimm bait. For being a little prick that thinks he can be a hunter." Cardin held up one fist in a not-too-subtle threat. "Come on now Glenny."

"I'm… sorry," I ground out through clenched teeth. My head swiveled so I wouldn't have to look Cardin in the eye; instead I picked a spot down low and off to the side.

"There, was that so hard?" Cardin clapped me hard on the shoulder twice, and I made sure to flinch both times. "I'll see you around, Glenny."

 _Give it a second. Give it a second, like you're building up courage out of frustration from being controlled._

Air flowed in and out explosively as I drew several deep breaths. "Yeah, well, the joke's on you! Jaune won't even be able to write an essay worth a passing grade! Enjoy failing!" The words were lobbed like a parting shot, meant to be the final say in the argument.

Of course, Cardin couldn't leave me with the last word could he? No, to answer my own question. No he could not.

"Well then, why don't you work on it with him and make sure he does a good job?" Cardin grinned in satisfaction, sure that I would despise such a punishment.

 _Well, that didn't take too long,_ I cheered internally. Externally my face still remained set in frustration. "Uhh, no? I'm not writing an essay for you Cardin. You can shove that idea you know where."

"You must not have heard me. I said, help Jauney-boy with my essay. Understand?" There was a menacing edge to the bully's voice as he marched back to tower over me.

"And you must not have heard me. I said no way in hell-"

Cardin's swing was, once again, obvious. I saw the long right hook coming with more than enough time to slip the blow or sway backwards out of the way. But that would defeat the purpose, now wouldn't it? I allowed Cardin to hit me in the cheek, determined not to break character.

Even though I rolled with the blow I still was amazed by how powerful the punch was. Though perhaps powerful isn't the best word to use. I would maybe substitute… let me think about this… what's the word? Oh yeah. Painful. Painful is the word I was looking for.

As such, it wasn't all acting when I grabbed at my head and hunched over slightly.

"I thought we discussed the attitude." The conversational tone he now used just made his sudden act of violence all the more worrisome. "You need to learn some manners, Glen. Or do I have to find another Grimm to teach you?"

"Fine," I sniveled, cowering away from the bully. "I'll do it! I'll make sure you get a good grade. I'll do it, I'll do it, I'll do it. Okay?"

"Thanks Glenny. I knew I could count on you."

I held up one hand tentatively as if afraid of voicing my thoughts outright. "I, uhh, since I'm going to do this, I'd like to have copies of previous essays you've done. You know, so that the teacher doesn't get suspicious when your writing style changes," I pointed out weakly.

Cardin frowned like he suspected me of something, but couldn't poke a hole in the logic I presented him. "Fine," he conceded. "But I'll be reading over them to make sure they're good. Don't try and get cute."

"I won't, I won't. I'm just making sure we're not caught. More for Jaune's sake, but still…" I trailed off nervously, scratching at the back of my neck.

Cardin looked at me sideways the whole time, but we exchanged scroll contact info and he sent me two different essays he had written. With that Cardin turned to leave me hunched over in the hallway, secure in the knowledge that I was completely intimidated by him. What had he to fear? I was clearly upset at him but I wouldn't sell him out; I was too worried about him releasing Jaune's secret and being beaten up. He had me right where he wanted me.

Or did I have him right where I wanted him? Not yet, but I was close in just a twenty four hour period of attack.

"And the Oscar goes to…" I muttered, straightening up and rubbing at my face. "Glen Foray! Whoooo."

 _Damn that was strong, comparable to some of Yang's punches. There's no form or finesse involved so you'd never get hit, but still. He's strong._

Fortunately I had got what I wanted - copies of his essays. Plus, he believed it was his idea to make me work on them, not mine; a pretty good bonus.

I can already hear someone asking: Why did I want his writing? Well, it's easy. The pivotal component in this latticework of a plan is Jaune. I need Jaune to be on board because in the end, I can't speak for him when he will undoubtedly be forced to testify in front of teachers. If he's not prepared, then Cardin's accusation won't bounce off him so easily; cracks or unpreparedness would cause the accusation to stick, which I didn't want. At that point he will have to talk and explain the situation of his own free will. And as I've said, the longer Cardin torments the blonde knight the more likely the Arc will acquiesce to my idea.

That means I'll probably have to wait for him to fall in line, but in that waiting period I don't want Jaune to be discovered as the writer of those essays prematurely. Popping that bubble is something I want to do on my own time when everything is ready. Plus, with all the essays Jaune will undoubtedly write, I can set up the essays with little 'tip-offs' that will prove they were not written by Cardin. The longer this time period goes on, the more work that will pile up - and the more severe Cardin's punishment would be when it's exposed that he didn't do it.

Thank you, academic honesty policy. All good things come to those who wait. Let that be a lesson to all of you: Stay in school. Patience is a virtue. Use wax paper to trap the moisture in your food when you reheat it in the microwave.

I don't know how that last one is relevant, but it's worth mentioning.

It may not need saying, but after the day had finally proven itself to be successful I was in high spirits. Pulling out my scroll, I deliberately chose to ask Jaune if he was available to get together for some guitar and to hang out when he got out of class. My interest was genuine, but I can't deny I was also using the opportunity to gain his trust. Everything was going wonderfully.

Then I ran into Velvet.

"Hey Glen!" she smiled, giving a little half wave.

"Hey there Velvet," I smiled back, glad to see her. "What're you up to?"

"I - oh my. Glen, what happened to you?" Velvet asked with a gasp.

My eyebrows scrunched together like they were trying to become one. "What do you mean?"

"Your eye! You've got a black eye." The faunus hurried over and cupped my face with both hands, turning it gently so that she could see better. "And all down your cheek. What happened Glen?"

"Really? I really have a black eye."

"Yes! How have you not noticed?"

 _Geeze. I thought my… oh, lovely. I bet I didn't put my aura up because I was too focused on reading the blow and staying in character and manipulating the conversation. No wonder it felt so strong. That's got to be instinctual Glen! You have to have your aura up for that!_

"I don't know… I just didn't?"

Velvet sighed as she stepped back. "Glen, you… well, it… it looks like something you'd remember. What happened?"

"It may have been a fist."

"May have? Was it training with Yang this morning?"

"I wouldn't say so, no… it may have been more Cardin than Yang."

"Were you going after him on behalf of Coco?" Velvet pursed her lips and frowned, looking expectantly at me.

"I've got a black eye over here and the first thing you do is accuse me of going behind your back?" My intent was to make a little joke because that's more or less what I was doing (semantics aside), but poor Velvet couldn't help but take it seriously.

"Oh- no! I'm sorry Glen. I didn't mean to doubt you like that-"

"Hey, it's okay. I'm just joking; don't worry about it," I said, hoping to ease Velvet's conscience. "I'm not working with Coco on anything, don't worry about that. I just ran across him a few minutes ago and he took exception to it."

"I'm sorry," said the rabbit miserably, ears drooping. "I can't help but think that I dragged you into this."

"Woah there." I placed a hand on each shoulder to give a soft shake. "I chose to get involved and took it way too far because I was upset. Don't beat yourself up, okay? I'm alive, you're alive, and that is the big thing right?"

"But Glen-"

"But nothing. It doesn't hurt so much; I didn't even know I had a black eye remember? It's fine."

"It's not fine!" frowned Velvet at my insistence that it was okay. "You shouldn't have to have this happen to you."

"Ah ah ah." I wagged a finger at the faunus. "Be careful there. You're starting to remind me of someone else."

"Who?"

"Uhh, _me_ two days ago when I was upset at Cardin for doing the same thing."

"It's not the same," mumbled Velvet.

"Of course it isn't," I chuckled. "But don't worry about it. It's alright. So, what brings you over here on a day like this?"

"Well, I was just headed over to Professor Oobleck's office to ask him about and assignment that I'm working on. What about you?"

"Ehh, I was just looking for Jaune. I found out he has a guitar and I was going to ask if he wanted to play it with me. But he's in class now, so I just sent him a text and am waiting for a response," I replied easily. Which, might I add, is _technically_ true- at least for the last three minutes or so.

"Oh cool! Maybe… I mean, could I - if you don't mind, or Jaune, or his team - could I join you after I talk with Oobleck?" Velvet asked hesitantly, running a hand through her hair.

"Sure! I don't see why not. I mean, I haven't got a response from him, but if I do I'll tell you either way. Sound good?"

"Sounds good. See you then!" said Velvet, waving shyly and hurrying off to confer with her professor.

Ahh, but I can already hear the questions forming. What was so bad about that? Why were things going well before this? It seems like they're going even better now!

Well, yeah, I guess. But I felt pretty guilty having to lie to Velvet. I guess I technically didn't lie, I just… chose my words carefully. Right. That's just semantics. A lie of omission may ease someone else's conscience, but not mine.

But what was the difference? I mean, I felt a little bad about manipulating Pyrrha. I was positively excited about manipulating Cardin. But I felt bad about telling little half-lies to Velvet? Because she might somehow feel like I was going behind her back?p

 _Geez. How's that for selectively applying ethics?_ I winced. _But it's all for a good cause._

The scroll in my pocket vibrated and I pulled it out in a motion that had become habitual in my short stay on Remnant.

 **Jaune: sure glen that would be good just got out of class so maybe in ten minutes**

 **Glen: Ok. Hey, do you mind if Velvet tags along? She said she was interested in joining, she'll just be a little later because she's meeting a teacher.**

 **Jaune: yeah thats cool i dont mind**

 **Glen: Sounds good bro. Look forward to it and I'll see you in a few :)**

Firing off a quick text to Velvet to confirm with her that Jaune and I would indeed be meeting, I felt my step lighten again as I put the conversation with the faunus behind me. In just a few minutes I'd get to play the guitar and sing along with it.

Why was that so exciting for me?

Well, music is a big part of my life. I've loved singing since ever and have loved being in my high school choir. Music is not just a part of me but also is like a kind of therapy. It's soothing to the soul; Or at least, it is to mine.

Secondly, I would get to make music that I hadn't heard since my departure from my world. With this being Remnant and my phone having been drowned I hadn't got a chance to do anything more than hum songs to myself.

Needless to say, I could hardly contain myself when I knocked on Jaune's door. I could hear some muffled voices, and then the wood swung open to admit the lanky frame of the blonde knight.

"Hey Glen, come in! I… woah. Are you okay?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "It's the black eye, isn't it?"

"Yeah dude. What happened?" Jaune asked as I entered. "Was it sparring with Yang?"

"Why does everyone assume that?" I asked, half to myself. "No, it wasn't. This was a parting gift from the one and only Cardin Winchester."

Jaune just nodded knowingly, surely having experienced something similar himself. The three other ears in the room peeled up at this, with wildly different reactions. Ren looked up from his studies and shook his head in such a manner that clearly showed his disdain for Cardin's actions. The two females in the room, however, did not act so sedately.

"That's unbelievable," frowned Pyrrha. "You, Jaune, and Velvet? And that's just the people we know about! I have no doubt there are more. Something needs to be done."

"I'll do something!" Nora cried, springboarding off her bed. Whilst in mid-air the girl whipped out what I can only describe as an enormous war hammer and swung it down towards the floor. With a display of inhuman strength, Nora halted the hammer inches above the carpet and looked up with a vicious grin. "The queen won't stand by and let her subjects be hurt like this! The traitor must be brought to justice! He will be executed!"

I held up both hands to stop this two woman onslaught that would no doubt reduce Cardin to a pile of ash if I let it continue. "Hey, it's fine. He may start it, but I'm giving as good as I get." _Soon enough I'll be giving a lot more anyway._

"Are you sure Glen?" Pyrrha asked concernedly.

"I really will break his legs," the orange haired maniac added.

"I'm sure, and I believe you. But I'll just let the problem sort itself out, okay? It's honestly nothing bad."

Neither of the women looked completely convinced, but both decided to drop the issue for my sake if nothing else. Pyrrha went back to her desk, sending concerned looks back my way as if I couldn't see her doing it. Ren had his hands full as Nora, in her seemingly all-or-nothing fashion, was busy poking at him, flopping on his desk, and otherwise trying to engage him in idle chit-chat as if nothing had ever happened.

"Hey, maybe we could… play out in the hallway?" Jaune asked tentatively. "Just so we don't disturb anyone?"

"For sure dude. Can we drag a chair or two out into the hall?"

"Yeah, yeah! I'll get the chairs, you grab the guitar right there."

My hands closed around the soft canvas case, the hardwood underneath propping it up. _Oh man, this is crazy. What should I play? I hope I'm not too out of practice._ With reverence I slowly brought the instrument to the hall where Jaune was already sat on a chair.

"Here," he said, holding out his hands expectantly. "I'll tune it for you."

"Okay." I almost reluctantly gave the case over, waiting for it to slip out of my fingers. Jaune pulled his guitar out and began to pluck at the strings, tuning each to perfection by ear. "Hey, while you're doing that I've got some news for you."

"Alright."

"So, you told me Cardin is forcing you to write essays. I mean, ideally we get you out of this, but until then I want to keep you out of trouble so Cardin doesn't spill your secret. Sooo, I may have gotten ahold of some copies of his essays so we can imitate his writing style."

"Does that have anything to do with your black eye?" Jaune gestured at the injury that took up a good chunk of my face before returning to tuning the B string.

"I can neither confirm nor deny that," I grinned. "But they're in my possession, and I'll help you turn it into his writing voice. Don't worry about that."

"Serious?"

"Yeah. We're gonna get you out of this, don't you worry."

"Meh," Jaune mumbled. "Maybe."

"We will dude. I mean, we can go through the academic honesty policy…" I threw the line out as if it was a fishing lure and I was the fisherman testing the waters.

"I don't know…" said Jaune. The blond strummed a couple chords before giving the guitar his seal of approval. "I still don't think it's… I don't think… I don't know."

He was closer to the edge than when I spoke to him just a few days before, and that was without me doing anything to influence him. Though it undoubtedly meant he was getting used by Cardin, I couldn't help but find some grim satisfaction in it. It hopefully wouldn't be long until he was ready to accept it.

"Just throwing it out there bro. It's still an option."

"Yeah, I know. Here, you want to play first? I can't think of a song right now." Jaune thrust the guitar at me, not very tactfully changing the subject. Being pushy wouldn't help my cause though, and so I graciously accepted the instrument.

"And you think I do?" I chuckled. "What kind of music do you like?"

"Anything, as long as it's not the Achieve Men. My sisters listened to them way too much and I never much liked them."

"Well you're in luck… I don't know the Achieve Men." It didn't narrow down my choices though, so I just picked a song I liked and wasn't too complicated. "Got a capo?"

"Yeah. Right here." Jaune pulled the device out of his case, handing it over to me.

I clipped the device onto the first fret and strummed experimentally, warming up my fingers a little before I began to play. I gently strummed through the intro, finding my rhythm as I launched into the song.

"I don't like walking 'round this old and empty house… so hold my hand I'll walk with you my dear…"

I closed my eyes as I continued to play, the chords I had played so often flowing through my fingertips. The song, both melancholy and hopeful, was so appropriate for how my life had gone in the months I had spent on Remnant. That despair and helplessness rose up within me as worked its way out through my voice, dissipating as it did so.

"...and though the truth may vary this, ship will carry our, bodies safe to shore." I finished the song and just relaxed a little, just enjoying the sound and the pent up emotions that had been loosed.

"Dang," breathed Jaune. "I wish I could sing like that dude. That was awesome."

"It's alright," I shrugged. "I mean, I can teach you to sing better while you teach me more guitar."

"It's alright? It's better than alright!"

"You do have a beautiful voice," said Velvet. She had apparently come in at some point while I was singing and I hadn't noticed. "It's no wonder you were in that choir."

"Thanks." I modestly accepted the compliment. "I appreciate it."

"You were in a choir?" Jaune asked.

"Yep, I was. That's a whole different kind of..."

My mind had just been thrown for a loop, shutting me down mid-sentence. The choir that I had been a member of… while I lived in Houston. On Earth. No one on Remnant should know about that except me. _And yet Velvet said…_ _what? What? How?_

"...It's a whole different kind of singing, stylistically," I managed to finish.

"Oh? How so?" Jaune asked.

I didn't have an answer at that moment, given how frazzled my mind had just become, but thankfully the door across from us was cracked open and a familiar bob of red tipped hair appeared. "Hey Glen! Was that you playing? That was so good! Oh no! What happened to your face? Was it Yang?" The rapid fire questions caught me off guard, as did Ruby's burst of speed to come up next to me and examine the injury.

When she touched the swollen bruise however, I was galvanized into action. "Oh! Nope. Okay there," I managed, grabbing Ruby's wrist and guiding it away from my face. "It's still a little tender. Let's not poke at it, okay?"

"Sorry Glen," said Ruby apologetically, clasping her hands together. "I didn't mean to-"

"It's fine," I reassured the young girl. "I'm okay."

"So what happened? If it was Yang I'm going to have words with her!" Ruby's pose, with a frown on her face and hands planted on her hips may well have worked had she been someone else; as it stood however, the small reaper just looked to small to be intimidating.

"Why does everyone assume it's Yang?" I asked with false exasperation.

"Uhh, because you spar with her all the time? And she's _super_ awesome and strong and you're… Uhh… not as much yet?" finished Ruby awkwardly.

I raised one eyebrow at her. "Thanks for the vote of confidence," I said dryly.

"Sorry. But my sister is really strong. Not that you're not strong, just that she's… even more strong." Ruby tapped her pointer fingers together as she rambled, trying to make me feel better.

"Don't worry, I know what you're saying," I said reassuringly. "It's… not inaccurate. But no, it wasn't Yang. Cardin hit me in the face and gave me this as a parting gift."

"He's a bully," growled Ruby. "I wish I had him right here! I'd...I would… I'd make him apologize!"

"Thank you for your support, but I'm okay, honestly." Ruby huffed in frustration at that, but before she could push the point I pulled a Jaune and switched to talking about music. "Now how about another song, huh?"

I began strumming again, leaving the capo on the first fret as I began. "I don't know who you are… And I don't know where you've been…"

After I finished that song I gave the instrument over to Jaune, and we passed the guitar back and forth as our impromptu jam session continued. It couldn't last forever- or at least our audience couldn't- as Ruby was eventually summoned back inside by Weiss, who told us to "keep it down". Velvet stayed for longer but eventually had to go as well, just leaving me and Jaune.

"You play some of your chords weird," said Jaune as I strummed random chords.

"Yeah. I broke my left hand a while ago and I got surgery to realign it, but my middle finger is still kinda twisted out of alignment. That makes it hard to play some chords, so for example I'll use pointer, ring, and pinky for C instead of having the middle finger in there." I held up my hand for his examination, bending my fingers to show how the one went a little crooked.

"Huh. You ever consider playing right handed?"

"Briefly, but by then I was too far gone on my left hand. I've just accepted I'll probably never be a classical guitarist," I said.

"Hah. Maybe not, but you're doing alright like this. But hey, I really liked the first song you sang. Do you think you could teach it to me?" Jaune asked.

"Yeah dude. It's just A minor, F major 7, and C. Then tack on a G for the chorus and sometimes you do regular F instead of the F major. I'll write it down for you with the lyrics," I promised.

"Really?"

"Yeah. And you're not a bad singer Jaune. Maybe a little pitchy and we can improve your tone, but you're pretty good."

"Thanks." Jaune grinned sheepishly.

"No problem."

The conversation died down briefly as I tried to work my way through the fingerstyle of Passenger's 'Let Her Go'. My fingers just wouldn't cooperate, and I kept repeating a section trying to get it right. Before long Jaune leaned in again and spoke.

"Cardin having hit you got everyone pretty upset, huh?"

 _Oh nice._ My brain jumped ahead forty miles in an instant. _It may have been an accident that I got hit, but I can use it to make a point._

"Yeah. See what I was saying though? He just touches me and I've got most of your team, SYBR, CFVY ready to hunt him down if I would have let them. That's what knowing people will get you."

Jayne shifted a little, his gaze fixed on the ground. "Yeah. I see that. But you haven't done anything wrong, you just… got hit. It's not like me…"

"I know. That's a whole different discussion though, on how to be able to deny Cardin's allegations. I'm just saying, you've probably got just as much support from your team and SYBR," I pointed out.

"But you have CFVY too."

"That's just because I've talked to more people. Besides, they're riled up about Cardin bullying Velvet so it wouldn't take much to swing them. You see? It's all about people."

Jaune contemplated this while I continued to pluck at the strings, finally making it through the intro without any big mistakes. "I… kinda see what you're saying," he admitted, twiddling his thumbs together.

"That's good enough dude. I'm just saying. Keep it in mind, will you?"

"I will."

"Sweet."

After a few more minutes of idle talk we began to pack up. Jaune hauled the chairs back inside while I packed up his guitar, tucking the capo and picks safely away in the pocket on his case.

"Thanks man," I said as I handed off the instrument. "That was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed playing with you a lot Jaune."

"Yeah, same here," he said enthusiastically. "We'll have to do it again sometime."

"For sure. And hey, text me when you're working on Cardin's paper okay? I want to help you out with that. So you don't get caught while you figure out what to do. Sound cool?"

"Yeah. Thanks a million Glen." Jaune sounded relieved at my suggestion, sagging against the doorframe.

"No problem dude. See you then!"

"Bye."

We waved and then Jaune closed the door. _Oh yes,_ I grinned to myself as I headed back to my dorm for the evening. _This has been a good day. I got to play the guitar and sing. Oh man that's a good day._

Sure, I got what I wanted from Cardin, and Jaune kept getting closer to accepting my proposal, but the music was the real win here.

Now, I'm sure Cardin was satisfied with how he perceived the day had gone too. _But give it a week Cardin. Give it a week or two. You won't be having so much fun then. But I will._

 _I guarantee it._

 **A/N: Whoo! Another day another dollar.**

 **Let me clear a few things up preemptively (maybe? Idk). Glen would normally just turn in Cardin, and have that be the end of it. But he really doesn't want to screw over Jaune, even if Jaune has done something wrong. So he needs to set it up so Jaune is least likely to be investigated after Cardin's pending accusation. For that he needs Jaune on board, hence this whole round-robin deal and waiting game. Don't know if that was clear enough in the chapter.**

 **Also, Cardin terrifying Glen is a real dick move, but Glen was never really in any danger. It would be like you grabbing a buddy who is terrified of monkeys and putting him against the primate enclosure so the spider monkeys poke at him a little.**

 **It'd scare the hell out of him and piss him off but it's not like he was in danger.**

 **Of course the metaphor does break down, and this is upscale, but you see what I'm getting at. Cardin's goal was to terrify Glen, in which he succeeded. It may be backfiring now, but that's all it was. As much of a huge dick as Cardin is he's not going to put Glen in serious danger.**

 **Probably.**

 **I mean, hitting Pyrrha with a nest of Rapier wasps is hella worse that what Glen was hit with. It probably had a pretty high chance of being massively painful at the best and potentially fatal at the worst. Allergic reaction yes, but really, you don't have to be allergic to get killed by stinging insects if you're stung enough. That plot by Cardin, the more you look back at it, was really vicious and I think indicative of what he's capable of if someone damages his ego.**

 **Like Pyrrha and Blake making him look foolish in front of a class. Or Glen almost laying him out in front of the cafeteria.**

 **Just sayin.**

 **Anyway, we're two steps closer to retribution on Cardin. And closer to a gnarly twist.**

 **Oooh, I can't wait.**

 **Hopefully I'll get another one out soon. Have a good one, and see you all on the flip side!**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Not gonna lie, it's been rough. But this isn't dead yet.**

* * *

I stood and watched as Cardin walked out of the school, if not to return ever than at least not anytime soon. The view from my window that looked across the courtyard allowed me to track him for his entire journey. Gone was the confident swagger, the ego that used to fill a room, and the smug satisfaction that I had come to know so well.

Instead, the figure that I watched shuffled his way slowly down the walkways. His shoulders hunched and curled in on themselves. It wasn't a matter of strength; you could likely have stacked most of the equipment in the weight room on his broad back and it would have made precious little difference.

I had not just gotten my own revenge, but revenge for all those Cardin had abused along the way - plenty of whom were my close friends. They could rest easy in the knowledge that he would no longer be lurking around every corner.

So why wasn't I more proud of what I had accomplished? Everything in this process had gone more or less to plan, for goodness sake.

It had been about a week and a half into my campaign the knight had knocked on my door mid-afternoon, a haggard look on his face.

It was an attitude with which I was well familiar. The last week I had been heavily involved in Jaune's - or should I say Cardin's - work. There had been many long hours spent in the library digging through books and browsing the Remnet to complete all the projects that Cardin had levied on us. Unfortunately for Jaune, he couldn't sleep in like I could and so suffered the consequences.

"Hey bro," I said. "What's up?"

Jaune just walked through the door and collapsed face down on one of the remaining beds, his hands clasped behind his head.

"So, how'd the field trip go?" I closed the door behind him, flopping down on one of the other beds opposite Jaune. There was a long pregnant pause with no response from the knight who had not moved or made a sound since he had collapsed on the red comforter. "That bad huh?"

"Pyrrha's in the infirmary," Jaune said quietly, voice muffled by the comforter.

I shot up from the bed, swinging my legs over the floor to face the back of Jaune's head. "She's in the infirmary?" No response. "Jaune, is she really in the infirmary?"

"Yeah."

"Holy crap. Is it bad?"

"Not really. Kind of? I don't know." Jaune finally rolled over to look me in the face. "It's my fault though Glen. I just…"

"What happened Jaune? What did you do? Give me something dude! Is she going to be okay?" I leaned in barely holding back from literally shaking Jaune out of his stupor, starved for information.

"She'll be okay," Jaune said in a defeated fashion.

"Well, good," I exhaled with some relief. "But what happened? I mean, what did you do?"

The knight sat up and put his head into his hands. The silence lasted long enough that I was about to ask again when Jaune let out a drawn out sigh and finally opened his mouth. "I was in my room last night just laying on the bed, trying to avoid Pyrrha, and I got a message from Cardin asking for rapier wasps."

"Rapier wasps?" I asked, hoping for clarification. Unfortunately, Jaune didn't immediately provide any information to help my understanding.

"Yeah. So I went and got a box full of them for him. You know, because what else am I supposed to do? Huh?" Jaune said in frustration. "I just figured this was one of the stupid things that he was having me do just because he could."

"Like a power trip?"

"Like all the other power trips he's gone on, yes. So I got a bunch of rapier wasps in a box-"

"How'd you manage that without getting stung?" I asked incredulously. "Wait, no, you just used aura right?"

"Well no, actually. Rapier wasps are one of nature's little miracles in that they can sting through aura. Well I'm not letting him do that to me, so I skipped out on classes this morning to buy a box of them from a breeder."

"They breed rapier wasps?" My face twisted in confusion. "For what purpose?"

"The wasp thing is kind of a misnomer, actually. They're really more like bees; they produce honey and all that. Plus their stingers go through aura, so there are medical and military groups researching them," Jaune informed me flatly.

"Wow, that's… pretty cool, actually. How did you learn all that?"

"I read it off the website when I looked up the breeder last night."

I nodded my head a little, mildly impressed with Jaune's thinking. "How much did that box run you?"

"Not as much as I thought, actually. Just a hundred lien or so," he sighed. "But that's not the point. The point is he made me bring them with us to Forever Fall."

His hands began clenching and twisting together as if wringing out an imaginary towel. Blonde hair dipped over his face as he tilted his gaze towards the ground again.

"What we were supposed to be doing is collecting sap from the trees there for Professor Peach's class. So of course, once we get there I have to be hanging out with Cardin. We get to a ridge eventually, just kind of overlooking everyone - maybe ten feet up or so - and Cardin makes me fill up a bunch of bottles of sap for the rest of them. And if that wasn't bad enough it sucks even worse because I'm pretty sure I'm allergic to the sap so my eyes are watering and I'm sneezing and feeling generally miserable."

"That sucks," I said sympathetically as Jaune took a second to breath. "I know what that's like."

"If only that was the worst. But no, when I get back to Cardin with these six jars of that damn sap he grabs one and pulls me to the edge of the little ridge. And guess what? He wants me to toss that jar off the cliff and hit Pyrrha in the back with it."

My mind flashed as connections were made and I drew a horrible, if likely, conclusion. "Rapier wasps aren't attracted to the sap by any chance… are they?"

"Oh they are. They're like bees, like I said. Love sweet stuff."

"Oh- oh crap. So, did… did you..."

"No!" Jaune snapped, eyes narrowing at me as I held my hands up in a form of apology. "No, I didn't throw it. But I didn't know what to do! There was no way I was going to throw it at Pyrrha, but I don't want to get thrown out of Beacon either! So I just freeze and stand there in indecision until Cardin starts threatening to let my secret go if I don't do it _now._ And I tried to think of something to do, so I just tell him I have terrible aim. He kinda accepted that I guess and then rips the jar out of my hand, hits Pyrrha with it, and releases the wasps. And I just… stood there! Just stood there and let it happen!"

My mind floundered as I sat back, struggling for some words that was going to set this right. "Damn," I managed. "Damn, that's a really crappy situation. I… wow."

 _Oh, brilliant Glen. That's exactly what he needed to hear._

To be fair, I'd never steered any of my friendships through waters this littered with rocks. You know, that good ol' 'blackmailed into gathering the weapon for a friend's destruction unknowingly and then forced to use it' situation. Those kinds of universal experiences that everyone has, right?

Hell no. I'd had friends be pissed at friends, friends pissed at me, even friends be bullied, but none of that gave me the words for this situation I'd unwittingly walked into. Still, my brain whirred away at a million miles an hour wondering what I should do next.

"I'm sorry to hear it Jaune. That's awful."

"Yeah," Jaune muttered, rubbing his temples. "Tell me about it."

"So does she know you were involved?" Information. I needed more of that precious lifeblood if I was going to formulate a way to attack the problem.

"Well, she didn't _see_ me if that's what you're asking. But she knows I was with them. It's hardly dust science."

"Mmm," I agreed uncomfortably. "So, what've you said to her then?"

"I haven't."

"Nothing?"

"Nope. Didn't know what to… what to say, what to do."

"You know you'll have to talk to her about it eventually, right?" Jaune didn't answer and just turned away to look out my windows. "Jaune, you do know that?"

"Yes."

"And do you think it would be better to do it sooner or later?"

"I don't know."

"Oh come on Jaune," I said, not at all believing he couldn't work it out. "Will it be better or worse to leave her to stew and draw her own conclusions?"

"Worse."

"Yeah," I nodded in agreement. "You better believe it'll be worse."

"But I can't just-"

"It's uncomfortable, Jaune. But you've just got to work up five seconds of insane courage to do it. Five seconds, dude. That's all it is. Just long enough to say, 'I'm sorry. I had no idea what they were planning. Please forgive me.' Or something like that, anyway."

The blonde knight couldn't look me in the eye, wringing his hands together like he could extract water from them. "But what if she… what if she says…" His voice trailed off, unable to finish the thought out loud.

"Jaune, you are your own harshest critic. She already forgave you forging transcripts, didn't she? Why wouldn't she forgive this? She wants to keep you as a friend just as bad as you do."

"You're sure?"

"Yeah. I know it."

Thankfully, everyone stayed true to form. Jaune apologized to Pyrrha, who worked even harder than I had to convince him it wasn't his fault. It was so sweet to watch, it brought a real smile to my face. One that died immediately.

Helping people is something that is deeply ingrained in me. I'm always ready to throw down anything to lend a hand, to solve the other person's problems, to fix whatever's going on in their life. That's part of what bleeds into me wanting to protect people I care about, and even those I don't know personally. It's just a different form of solving current problems and forestalling future ones.

And that's why I felt so… perverse, I guess. In a way I was perverting the purpose that was buried so deep in my core. I was helping them, yeah, but for the first time to my memory there was… God, I don't know, something else there. It wasn't just helping for the sake of helping like it always had been. I was manipulating friends intentionally to bring ruin to someone else. Kind of a 'do the ends justify the means' type deal.

Not like I was going to back out. I'd just shoulder this by myself and deal with it afterwards. _Just deal with it Glen. It's for everyone else. Jaune, Velvet, even Pyrrha - everyone's going to be better off because of it._

 _You know you're lying,_ a part of me whispered. In turn I squelched that thought without hesitation. Doubt like that wasn't going to serve me well.

Once Pyrrha and Jaune had their moment, it wasn't hard to convince both of them to support me by testifying against Cardin. I not only reminded them of the trouble he brought on them, but I brought up my own experience chock full of emotion. Pyrrha wasn't hard to figure out; she wanted friends, and wanted to protect people like I did. Center stage: a friend in need of help and protection who she also owes for convincing one of her other friends to reconcile with her.

Considering that there was no way she wouldn't offer to help. Jaune was in much the same boat though for different reasons. He was in need of support to dodge Cardin's blackmail an he owed me, a friend, for helping him with at least one of his problems. Above all, Cardin making him complicit in hurting Pyrrha was really what ha tipped him to the edge. One Pyrrha agreed with me, he was a shoe in right after.

But despite having two people buy into my plan, I couldn't bring myself to really enjoy it. Pyrrha didn't seem like the vengeful kind, and Jaune - whether through altruism or purely the fear of expulsion - had already told me he wasn't. Left to their own devices they might have figured out their own solution to where Cardin left them alone.

Or they wouldn't have. Maybe, if I hadn't done something, Jaune would have succumbed to the pressure and been ruined.

Either way, my plan already had enough on its side for success - but there was a way to get even more insurance. 'Get' may have been a strong word. After all that implies having to go retrieve something. My insurance didn't need to be retrieved. In fact, before I could figure out the best way to approach it, it tracked me down and dragged me into an abandoned classroom.

"Hey there Coco," I said, dusting myself off. "If anybody saw that they might get the wrong idea."

"Well, we better not disappoint then," she replied coquettishly. Her dark brown eyes met mine, only for me to break away first.

Scratching the back of my head, I fought the blood that was heating up my cheeks. "I don't know why I even go there. You just up the ante and win."

"You call that upping the ante?"

"You called for a reason?" I countered, switching the subject.

For once, Coco didn't seem to mind me dodging out of the way of a flirtatious conversation. She practically jumped on me, grinning like a lunatic as she glanced around for the last time. "Me and Fox figured out what kind of prank we're going to do to get back at this bastard. Okay, so here's what we're thinking of doing. First-"

"Actually, that's the thing." I tried to pull Coco's hands off my shoulders, but the vice clamps just dug in harder.

"What? Don't tell me you're pussing out now."

"No, no." My explanation tumbled out in front of Coco's thunderous expression. "Actually I've already got a plan in motion I could use your help with. I was getting ready to contact you when you pulled me aside like this."

The gunner took a step back, cocking a hip to one side and resting a hand on it. "Oh really? Do tell, because it can't be better than mine."

"I-"

The other hand flew up to hush me. "And you better have something as good at least, because if it isn't, I'm going to kill you for starting without me."

"I think I can get Cardin expelled."

We were only two people in an abandoned room, but even then I didn't think it could get so quiet. Coco's jaw hung open in genuine surprise, suspended in space as she tried to unfreeze herself. The silence had dragged on just long enough that I started getting worried when she snapped out of it.

"Oum, you're serious, aren't you? How?"

"Well, he's been blackmailing Jaune into doing his work. That's breaking a zero-tolerance policy rule. So I'm going to expose that to the teachers along with testimony from some of the other kids he's bullied. At the least that's going to be some serious repercussions-"

In that next second any doubts I had about whether Coco would go for it or not were completely erased. One second I was laying out a plan, and the next second a hand was grabbing my collar and tilting my face just slightly down so Coco was mere inches away.

"Oum, that's going to be a shit show for him. Of course I'll fucking help. After what he's done to Vel and every other poor sap to cross his path he more than deserves it." Finishing where the hand had left off, Coco barely had to tilt her head up to drag me into a kiss.

There was a second where the shock of it caused me to tense up, and I could hardly notice anything. Then, right after I relaxed, it was over. Coco pulled back almost breathless, a gleam in her eye.

"Monty fucking Oum, you're hot when you're scheming to fuck up Cardin. Text me what you need me to do." She turned and sashayed away, grinning over her shoulder. "And the scruff is a good look. Just keep it trimmed so it doesn't tickle too much, yeah?"

I just stood there in utter shock, unable to do more that put an unbelieving hand to my lips. Coco paused again at the doorway and laughed at my paralysis. "That's upping the ante, Glen."

God I was confused. After I had relaxed into it, there was so much I absorbed in an instant. Coco's mouth, impossibly soft, tugging at my bottom lip. One of her hands had slid up from my collar to my jaw, holding my head in the right place more gently than I would have ever guessed her capable of.

And my body. Jesus, my heart had flicked into overdrive and jack-hammered through my ribs to meet the other hand that rested there. But more that that my body burned. My chest was on fire somewhere deep within, and my face was burning on the surface. I don't know how to adequately explain it. The fire was the best part. It burned, but… it was addicting. Barely had the kiss touched me for a second or two but I wanted more, more, _more._

All I wanted in that moment was to run after Coco and see if she wouldn't let me kiss her, but for longer this time. Time to feed the fire, to have more than a split second to begin to enjoy it. Doubtless I would have - the desire was that strong - but that I was still frozen in place having watched her go.

Damn the fire metaphor. It's so… I don't know, cheap? Corny? Super romanticized for what's really just the libido kicking off?

But it's not inaccurate.

It took the better part of half a minute for my mind to begin operating coherently once more, but I still didn't do much other than sit down in an empty desk.

 _Huh. I always assumed she was just flirting for the banter, but what if she really wasn't? Or what if she was, and this was just for me helping Velvet? Or is this her really just upping the ante? Maybe all three? I have … absolutely no idea what to do. This is so far outside my normal sphere of interactions._

 _Maybe text her the details? For the plan?_

 _Right._

But instead I continued to sit there running a finger over my lips, savoring the slightly sweet taste that lingered, slowly fading away.

 _Vanilla. I think it's vanilla. That's interesting._

After breaking out of the spell and sending a few messages, I soon convened the little group and laid out a unified plan. Jaune would send an email to Ozpin directly, as I believed he would be more understanding than Ms. Goodwitch might. That email was carefully crafted by yours truly to give the best odds at Jaune coming though this unscathed while still incriminating Cardin.

Included in that email as part of the evidence for bullying was a short list of others he knew had been bullied by Cardin. Namely Pyrrha, Velvet, and myself.

Pyrrha and I were ready, but I knew Velvet would be reluctant to go. Hence me recruiting Coco for a guarantee that even if Velvet refused, Coco would be there to tell the story in her stead. But, under the pressure of her fashionable teammate, Velvet caved and agreed. And why wouldn't she?

She didn't know it was a plot to get revenge after all. Insert slight stabbing guilt here.

Considering the impact that this would have on Cardin all it took after that was a little coordination, a carefully crafted email from 'Jaune', and a parade of incriminating witnesses for us to be in business. The trap was sprung. Perhaps that's a little… oversimplified. I didn't just get people to tattletale; the whole point of this was not only to get back at Winchester but to make sure Jaune didn't get harmed in the process. Accordingly Jaune and also I went through some one-on-one practice, where I drilled him on how to best navigate through the conversations that would surely follow.

My high school acting career and years as a professional bullshitter under an omniscient mother came into their own, and everything from word choice to inflection and expression was covered. If Jaune was going to get by unscathed by Cardin's accusations, it was important he be convincing - something I reminded him of every time he needed encouragement to keep going.

And then the day arrived. The PA system in the school, which I had almost never heard used before, rang out one time after another. First Jaune was summoned to the headmasters office. Then Pyrrha. Then Velvet, undoubtedly with Coco helping her along at my behest. The way the pattern was going, I sat in my room in nervous anticipation of being called next.

But I wasn't. Cardin was.

 _Huh, okay,_ I thought. _Maybe it's because I'm not a student? Or is there really no pattern?_

Something was a little off, but close to an hour later my scroll buzzed in my pocket. Flipping it open, I put the advanced phone up to my ear. "Hello, this is Glen."

"Mister Foray. I'm glad to hear from you. I'd call you up over the speakers, but I feel that might miss out on the announcement should you be in your dorm. Please, if you would be so kind as to come up to my office?"

"Yes sir, I'll be up in a few."

"Thank you, Mister Foray."

I hung up and jogged my way through the halls with an easy familiarity that came from having spent so much time at the school. What had once taken me a run around the entire school to find was now just a hop, skip, and an elevator ride away. The doors dinged open, admitting me into the large window - covered office.

Ozpin sat behind the desk as he had the other times I had seen him, relaxed in his chair with a cup of coffee in his hands. Another cup sat across from him steam still rising from the mug.

"Good afternoon Mister Foray. Please have a seat." The headmaster gestured to the chair setup opposite him, which I accepted. "I poured you a cup of coffee, if you'd like some."

"I'd love some, yeah," I smiled. My hands closed around the porcelain and I allowed the heat to radiate through my hands before I sipped on the fragrant beverage. "It's good."

 _Liars often desire to put something between them and the accuser. That is why a drink is often given in interrogations._

Deliberately I held on to the cup for a few more sips before setting it just off to one side. Close enough to keep drinking but not in between Ozpin and I.

"I'm glad you like it. Now, Mister Foray, do you know why you're here?"

"Well, I think I could make an educated guess, but I don't want to be wrong."

Ozpin leaned back, a twinkle hiding behind his odd circular glasses. "Go ahead, Mister Foray. I'm interested to see what you think."

"Okay," I nodded. "Well, I think I'm here to be asked about Cardin."

"And why would that be?"

"Well, Jaune kind of talked to me about what's going on between him and Cardin, and I heard all the other names getting called. I know they've been getting bullied by him too, so I figured that's what it would be about."

"It is, Mister Foray. That's very... astute of you." The twinkle in the headmaster's eye suggested he knew far more than he let on, leaving me to be on guard. "We are indeed here to talk about Cardin Winchester, as well as Jaune Arc."

"Okay." I squared myself away a little, ready for the questions to come. "What do you want to ask?"

Ozpin steepled his fingers before him as he began asking questions. "Did you know Jaune had been doing work for Cardin?"

"I did."

"You did? Interesting. For how long?"

 _Ahh, crap. I didn't think of answering this one._ I knew I only had about a second to half a second to really consider my options before I had to at least begin a sentence. A long pause, hemming and hawing, repeating the question - all indicators that a liar is trying to think up an answer. _But what? The truth, I guess. Or at least most of it._

"I just found out relatively recently."

 _Not untrue, but just unspecific enough._

"And he trusted you with this out of nowhere?"

"Not really." A thought struck me as to how I could eliminate inconsistencies by using the truth to mask the slight omissions. "About a week ago. Or no, maybe it was a week and a half. Maybe a little more? A week and a half, maybe. Anyway, I found out about it myself. He didn't tell me."

"Really?" Ozpin asked nonchalantly, taking a sip of his coffee. "What was forcing him to do this? I presume it wasn't of his free will."

"No, he was being coerced under threat of violence," I only half-lied. "Cardin said he was going to seriously hurt him if he didn't."

"Then why didn't you contact the teachers? Had that been done Cardin would not have been given any further opportunity to harm Mister Arc. After all, you did know this for a week or more."

I mirrored him, taking a sip of my own drink and almost set it down in front of me before I pulled it back to my chest. "Yeah, yeah. I guess. But then Cardin figured out I knew and convinced me not to tell either."

I held onto my coffee for a second longer as I let the silence build. I didn't need to provide an answer and if there was an awkward pause, sooner or later someone would need to fill it. If Ozpin thought I would continue talking just to fill the void he was going to be sorely disappointed.

Instead, I sipped on my coffee some more. It had cooled sufficiently that a deep draft was possible. I rolled the slightly nutty, caramel esque taste around my mouth with satisfaction. No cream or sugar to get in the way of this beautiful bitter drink.

 _Huh. He never asked if I wanted cream or sugar. A social slipup? He assumes I take it black because he does?_ I paused that line of thinking. _Doesn't seem like Ozpin. The man's too socially astute for that._

 _Interesting._

"So he's bullied you into silence?"

 _There's the leading question. How about using the lack of specificity to appear not too eager to talk about this traumatizing event? That should be a good look._

"Yeah, that would be putting it lightly," I growled, surprising myself with the venom that was eking into my voice. "Sorry. It just gets under my skin. All the crap he's done."

"Perfectly understandable, Glen," Ozpin reassured me. "Just tell me what happened."

"Well, aside from all the crap he put Jaune through, and roping Pyrrha into it and hurting her… and Velvet," I seethed, my hands trembling. On some level, I knew that the emotion was a double edged sword. It would make me more convincing, sure, but it clouded my carefully crafted words. But I just couldn't stop the anger from rising up and taking hold of my voice.

"He takes such delight in taking on those who he thinks can't possibly be of any harm to him and tormenting them. And then with me... he ganged up on me with all the members of his posse just to beat me down, drag me to Port's classroom, and held me on the edge of feeding me to one of the Grimm kept there. He made me fear for my life and just laughed because I thought he might actually kill me."

If Ozpin was shocked by my statement, the only indication he gave was a raise of his eyebrows. "That's reprehensible."

"Yeah. Reprehensible. Deplorable. Despicable. Indefensible. Whatever you call it, it's not _right._ Especially not for someone who may one day hold a lot of power over a great many people." Internally I tried to reign back in my emotion. I was past calculating; I wasn't keeping track of what I might be giving up or betraying. Instead the emotional wave was controlling me and likely giving away far too much. "And aside from that, he knows that he can get to me through those other people and even Jaune himself. I keep quiet to help myself and them. But if he thought that I wouldn't see him pay fro that he has another thing coming."

"Indeed." Ozpin sighed, briefly pulling off his spectacles to polish them. "I'm truly sorry to hear this happened to you, Glen. Especially in the wake of all that has already befallen you."

"Thank you," I managed more sedately.

The headmaster's eyes were soft, conveying a deep understanding of hurt suffered. His hands pressed together almost as in a prayer and came up to steeple under his nose. "How are you doing Glen?"

"I'm fine," I replied on reflex - but the end caught in my throat when Ozpin shook his head slightly.

A small, melancholy smile slid onto Ozpin's face. "No. I doubt you are, Glen. But you don't have to be. Tell me honestly."

My breath hitched in and out momentarily as I slowly eked words past the wall in my throat. "I'm, uhhh… as fine as I can be under the circumstances, I think. Just… lonely, I guess. More than sad even."

There was another long pause as I worked up to swinging it to the positive. "But, you know, working out so hard is a pretty good antidepressant, and I'm making friends, so… I'll be okay."

"I understand that pain, Glen." As he spoke, Ozpin leaned back and stared off into space. "The feeling you are all alone and that no one truly knows you. That… that is a tragedy."

It took a few seconds of contemplative silence before Ozpin snapped himself out of the trance. "Why didn't you tell us about Cardin anyway? He still wouldn't have had an opportunity to harm anyone mentioned once it had been brought to our attention."

 _Oh he got me leaning by switching up the topic,_ I realized as I reconfigured my train of thinking.

"Because, I thought he might genuinely kill me or hurt me seriously in that moment with the Grimm." I allowed a tiny tremor to work its way in. "That was… that was enough to leave me shocked for a while. Finally I got over it, talked with Jaune about coming clean, and here I am."

"I can understand the toll that must take. Forgive me; we deal with Grimm so often that I often can't appreciate the fear they can inspire in the uninitiated. I'm sorry about that. I believe I've heard all that's necessary for now, but I'll likely want to talk to you once more in a moment. It might be easiest if you wait down in the reception - if it's not too much trouble."

"No, it's not too much trouble sir."

"Good." Ozpin gestured to my half empty mug. "Feel free to take that down with you and finish it."

"Thank you sir. I'll see you soon."

"And Mister Foray?"

"Yes sir?"

"You do know we have qualified counselors on staff?"

"Yes sir."

"Very well." Ozpin motioned me off with a wave of his hand, indicating our time had come to a close.

Taking the coffee I got on the elevator and left the office, Ozpin watching me go the whole time. I had a strange sense of unease as I descended. The conversation had been short - unnaturally so.

Of course I had no real _basis_ for this, but everyone else seemed to be called up in forty-five minute intervals. I had barely spent ten.

 _Then again, he did say he'd call me up soon. Still time left, I suppose. Plus, I may be treated differently because I'm not a student._

Satisfied with my logic, I settled down to wait. And wait. And wait. After an eternity of twenty minutes, my scroll buzzed to let me know I could come back up. In actuality, the wait wasn't so bad. I was trying to practice a fighting game on my scroll that Yang had insisted I download one day.

It was one of those arcade fighting games, something along the lines of Mortal Kombat - which made me doubly crap at it. Not only was it a screen instead of a controller with toggles and buttons, but I had never been good at these kinds of games.

FPS games? Stone cold accuracy. Racing games? Bring it on, Andretti. These 2D fighters? I was that dick who found one broken attack to juggle because nuance was lost to me. But, in the true spirit of competition, I was going to get good enough to win outright.

That was the goal but my frustration indicated I was nowhere close. I was at a stage where I could beat the normal AI with ease but the hard AI would crush me mercilessly. Which was depressing, because when Yang showed me how to play she dismantled the legendary AI virtually with one hand. The other was busy holding a soda to sip on half the time.

I really wasn't optimistic about my chances.

To take my mind off failure on that front at least this little operation I had set up was looking good. I hadn't been perfect, but I had been damn good. It was all downhill from here. Probably.

"Mister Foray."

I nodded as I stepped off the elevator, responding in kind. "Headmaster. What do you need?"

Ozpin paused, and something in my gut tugged at me nervously. "Firstly Mister Foray, I wanted to apologize slightly for the intensity of the questioning earlier, especially relieving such a painful memory. I simply want to get to the truth before making a verdict."

"I understand sir."

"Thank you. Secondly, I want to inform you that your story lines up with everything else we've been told. Considering all that he's done, particularly in regards to the violence perpetrated and the breech of academic rule, I have come to the decision that Cardin Winchester will be expelled."

The tugging in my gut grew stronger. _Why? Why tell me? Shouldn't he just tell Cardin? And not that there's not justification for this but this decision seems… quick._

Those were the thoughts bouncing around in my head, but all that I got out was an articulate, "Uhh, what? Oh… wow."

"Unfortunately this leaves us with something of a problem. Cardin's team is now going to be a man short and leaderless too. Now, this might not be such a problem except that we don't allow first year teams to have less than four members. This is a safety precaution while they're still developing their skills." Ozpin spoke regretfully, as if he was about to deliver some terrible news. "This means that all three members of the team will have to wait until a new influx of students, which will be next year."

"That's unfortunate," I managed. My mind had lept to a conclusion that seemed so preposterous that it couldn't possibly be correct, but the tugging in my gut had turned into turmoil.

"It is indeed," Ozpin agreed. "But fortunately, you are in a position to remedy this."

"No," I said in disbelief.

"It would only be temporary. You would be installed as the de-facto leader of team CRDL for the end of this semester and through the spring semester. Then when they become second years they can continue on without you."

Ozpin looked at me expectantly, almost like he expected me to jump at the opportunity. My expression, which had gone slack for a moment, shifted in a way that betrayed my thoughts before I even spoke. My eyes hardened and brows drew together, while my mouth became set in a hard line.

"With all due respect sir, I believe that is ill-advised."

"Why is that, Mister Foray?" Ozpin cocked his head slightly, seeming confident he could win the forthcoming argument.

My speech became fast, clipped, and pointed as it often did when I was making an argument - a habit picked up from my days doing debate. "Firstly, and perhaps most importantly, I am not even close to the same level as any of the students here. I think that's a rather important consideration given the nature of this school. It's purpose, unless I'm _grievously_ mistaken, is to train people to hunt and kill the creatures of Grimm. A task that needs doing, yes, but not one that I am capable of. I have a fighting style that is sub-optimal if we're being generous and useless at worst. I can fight people, not monsters. I'm afraid of the Grimm, unlike most of the people here, which is a pretty good handicap to overcome even without all the other disadvantages.

"Even then, should we talk about fighting people, I am under no delusion. I can beat the average person handily but huntresses and huntsmen? Hardly. I barely am able to keep up with Yang as it is right now. If you threw us in a ring and had us slug it out, it's a coin toss as to who would win. Even that has some major qualifiers on it. I know aura is an amazing thing, but at a guess I'm forty pounds heavier, have something like half a foot in height and reach advantage on her, and am at least at equal strength if not stronger. Physically she is fighting way out of her weight class and despite that it takes every trick I have to be competitive. We haven't even touched on her using her weapons, and should we try that I presume that I would get crushed within thirty seconds. I doubt I'd do much better against anyone else here. Again, I understand Yang is one of the stronger fighters, but there are qualifiers. She uses a fighting style with which I am familiar. Throw me into a ring with someone using a sword, scythe, or _gun_ and I'd likely just be somewhere north of useless."

"Is that all?"

My face must have registered some sort of incredulity as Ozpin calmly surveyed me. "Is that all? Hardly. That's just my biggest issue. There are more besides. For example, I have no weapon with which to fight besides my fists. I will be _joining_ the team that has actively bullied me for almost two weeks now - and I'm sure that there will be no lost love there. You're asking me to enter a hostile environment in what will be a three versus one scenario and I'm sure we know how that will end, given what I just explained seconds ago. Not only this, but as leader? I hardly have the qualifications for such a tile. I don't have the knowledge of tactics that would likely be required. Speaking of no knowledge, I have been in this world a matter of months. My knowledge of history, Grimm, and culture - anything, really - is limited by that time frame. Given all this, I think that there are likely far better solutions that could be wrought."

Ozpin chuckled, a smile spreading across his face. I had expected disappointment, perhaps, or maybe some form of understanding. But humor? That I wasn't ready for.

"You really are incredible, Glen," he laughed eyes twinkling. "You are more articulate and self-aware than almost any adult I know. With your intellect I have no doubt you'll be able to keep up in class."

"You think?" I challenged.

"Mister Foray, you already have. You did an exceptional job on Cardin's assignments after all."

My mouth opened to deny it, but it closed quickly. It really didn't matter that much if he knew. I wasn't a student... yet... and I was acting under duress. "How did you know?"

"Please, Mister Foray. There is a significant difference between your work and Mister Arc's, no disrespect intended. There is a clear shift to higher quality work that closely matched the writing patterns of Cardin Winchester. That, I believe, was your doing?"

 _Of course they would notice the change,_ I mentally berated myself. _Well, to be fair, had Jaune not come around so soon the goal of keeping him from getting found out would have made it worth it. But still, how did he know I was the one?_

Ozpin gave a sly wink at my furrowed brows. "Also Mister Arc told me that Cardin forced you to help him."

"That's accurate," I sighed. "I'm not going to argue I'm not capable of keeping up with the paperwork with a little effort. But I think my other objections still stand, and strongly."

"So they do, Mister Foray. And I appreciate and respect your fears and concerns. If you would allow me a moment to address them and convince you?" Ozpin opened both hands before him, inviting my response. When I sat back and nodded, arms crossed, he continued. "Very well. Again, I understand your concerns. But, you must consider you aren't in a typical situation and you aren't in your world anymore. There are people in this world that will be willing to do unspeakable things to you simply because you are not from this world. Your first line of defense is people not learning about you, yes. Simply hiding forever, however, is a foolish and naive hope. What I am providing you with here is an opportunity to radically improve your ability to survive in many ways. Learning more about this world, and spending more time in and among the culture, will allow you to blend in better in the future.

"Furthermore, this is the best environment for you to learn to fight as a means of defending yourself. Fighting humans you will learn, but fighting Grimm is just as important. They are an ever present threat to everyone including you. You will be learning to fight in one of the safest places in all of Remnant. You're going to have the safety net of many teachers, friends, and hopefully even teammates. I'm sorry that this opportunity requires you being placed in with those that are hostile to you, I truly am. I also have little doubt that with your charisma and interpersonal skills you will make it work. But Glen, if you can not make it work in this environment… well, the world will not be as merciful or flexible. In a perfect world this would not be necessary, but the world is not perfect and you are a part of exceptional circumstances. Does this make sense? I only do this to give you the best possible chance of surviving."

There was a tense moment of silence before Ozpin added on to this explanation. "Not only this, but you allow me to keep three promising huntsman and give them an opportunity for reform, not resentment. It would only be for a couple of months after all."

I thought it over. And over, and over, and no matter how I twisted it or tried to make excuses… Ozpin made a lot of sense. Too much sense. True, it was going to suck… I mean, really suck. And I wasn't too enthusiastic about it being with that particular group of guys. But Ozpin was right; if I was to survive long term, I would need to get better and develop my skills. It didn't mean I had to like it, though.

It took about twenty minutes of silence, which Ozpin passed by doing paperwork until I finally voiced my decision.

"Alright. I'll do it. You have my cooperation."

After that things moved very quickly. There was paperwork, and a different ID, instructions on packing up and the new room I'd be in come the next day and suddenly…

Suddenly I was watching Cardin make his way out of the school escorted by Ms. Goodwitch and I couldn't keep the doubts from assailing me. There was so much unknown I was jumping into, so much I had done that I wasn't sure about. My chest was constructed, burning like an acid had been placed inside of me. There were just far too many questions.

What if I couldn't live up to the expectations? What if I got seriously injured in a sparring match? What if a Grimm disemboweled me, or someone I cared about because I couldn't be good enough? What if I was horribly bullied by my teammates? Would I have time to spend with my old friends?

I lay on the floor and rested my head against a pillow I had dragged down with nothing to distract me. A couple times someone had banged on my door, but I didn't answer. _Not Coco,_ I joked to myself. _She would have let herself in._ After that my scroll would buzz intermittently until I shut it off to avoid the ring that only elevated my anxiety.

Taking time to process the massive shift my life had taken was something I wanted to do alone.

I mean, how many times could my life be flipped upside down? I had come to this world and barely gotten into a routine when it changed with me being shot. Then I came to Beacon and thought I had been settled but instead all that happened was my stay had been flipped on its head again.

"If I could just know what he future held, that'd be great," I murmured to myself as I stared at the ceiling. "Not omniscience, or even a plan. Just a purpose. Why am I here? Why?"

Sure, I had made up my mind to live because my death would only end up hurting people like Coco, or Velvet - or everyone else that I'd now become friends with. But that wasn't a purpose. That wasn't living. That was just not dying.

They are different, you know.

I pondered those questions over and over until my mind stopped operating as quick as it normally did. After a considerable time spent soul searching, a long and tiring day behind me, and a semi-comfortable position on the floor, I soon couldn't stop my eyes from fluttering closed.

White.

That was all I saw. White, and blindingly so. I held up a hand and blinked owlishly until my eyes adjusted. I was in a white room, with a spiral staircase in one corner and an external balcony. But… parts of it reminded me of places I'd been. There was a leather couch against the wall, a bed with red covers opposite, and a magazine stand in the corner.

Slowly I stood from my position and tried to place the familiarity I felt.

 _That bed, that's… that's like the ones they have in Beacon. And that couch, that's the one that was in the apartment room Mrs. Scarlatina lent me! And that…_ I paused at the magazine rack. _I don't know where that's from._

As I continued to survey my surroundings I realized I had no idea how long I'd been there. I knew it had been a while since I had stood up to survey the room, but I couldn't tell how much time had passed. It could have been five minutes or five hours for all I knew. The longer I stood though, the more I saw. There were a pair of gloves tossed on the bed, like the ones Yang and I had worn for sparring. Outside I knew there was a city somewhere and a large body of water - lake or ocean I couldn't tell. I knew they were there, but I couldn't see them… not clearly, anyway.

Does that make sense? I hope you get the gist of it. I guess the best way to describe it is dream like. You know, no concept of the passage of time, just 'knowing' something, things of that nature.

More time passed, and after figuring out where everything in the room came from I still hadn't figured out the magazine rack. Why was it here? What purpose did it serve?

When it hit me a visible shiver ran through my body and a hand flew to my thigh where a phantom pain has struck. It was the rack from the store - _the_ dust store - the one where I had been shot. This rotating metal piece had been used to elevate my leg when I was bleeding out on the floor. That sudden revelation hit me like a bucket of cold water, and I for the first time latched on to the odd familiarity the room had.

 _And this is… this is… this is the blank building that I was in when I had that near death experience. Where the other me was. The other me!_

"Hello?" I called out tentatively. "Glen 2.0? Glennifer? David?" I had a small laugh before I called out again. "Am I there? It's me asking!"

There was someone else here, I was sure of it. I could inexplicably feel the presence of someone else pressing on me, and I once again tried to entice my doppelgänger out into the open. "It looks different than last time! I mean, have you been redecorating? I hope not dude. Not being the best at interior decorating is okay, but this just seems a little random."

"Hello, Glen," purred a rich voice from behind me.

I turned slowly, unsure of what I would find. The voice had been feminine, not my familiar bari-tones. Haha… kill me. And I thought spending so much time with Yang would really have no effect. Regardless, unless I had finally gotten in touch with my feminine side this wasn't me.

Completing my revolution I found that I was indeed correct. It most definitely wasn't the other me. The woman before me had soft golden hair that framed a beautiful face. Her blue eyes met my hazel ones and a soft smile spread infectiously over her pink lips. A baby blue sleeveless dress completed the look, and a resonant laugh followed my surprised expression.

"Not expecting anyone?"

I unglued my jaw and replied as best I could. "No, just… maybe someone different."

"Well, I'm glad we're finally getting a chance to meet. I believe you're the one that I've been searching for. Months spent, and I was losing hope of finding you."

Her friendly tone put me completely at ease, though I wondered where my mind could have conjured her from. "Well, now that we've met, who do I have the pleasure of addressing?"

"Of course," she smiled disarmingly, one delicate, pale hand extended to clasped mine. "My name is Salem."

"Glen Foray."

"I know," she chuckled, and I couldn't help but mimic her high spirits. A second later a flit of annoyance crossed her pretty features. "It seems we won't be able to talk as long as I had hoped. I will see you soon, Glen."

"Wha-"

 _Smack._

I jolted awake as a hand crossed my face, calling out some incoherent words and moving to grab whoever had hit me.

"Woah sleepyhead! Settle down there."

"Coco?" I muttered thickly as I shook myself into wakefulness. "What?"

"You're not answering your scroll. Are you hiding from me, you little bitch… idiot," the brunette amended as she glanced over her shoulder. Following her gaze I saw Velvet standing apologetically, mouthing phrases that I assumed were some variation of 'sorry my friend let herself in and is shaking and slapping you'. Unused to Coco's behavior, Jaune and Pyrrha stood back more uncertainly. "Do you have any idea what just happened?"

"No?" Now that my brain had a longer second to process the three people behind the maniac that was busy getting in my face I got a little more nuance in their expressions. All three of them looked… awkward? Well, Velvet and Pyrrha did anyway. Jaune at least was raising his eyebrows, though he looked slightly flushed

 _What_ … _oh. Ohhhhh boy._ In my defense, I had just been woken up from a nap and was still super groggy. If you take anything away from this, know it takes me a long time to wake up. Except for exceptional circumstances. Which these were.

Let me paint a picture for you. Coco, in her bold and provocative nature, had decided the best way to go about waking me up was to get in my face and yell and slap. But you already knew that. See, the violence wasn't the problem. The _problem_ was the vixen hadn't knelt beside me but rather _over_ me.

So, straddling my midriff.

Let me reemphasize. I had _just woken up_ and now had a _hot chick straddling me_ while three other people deliberately weren't looking directly at us.

Someone will understand, surely. It's still embarrassing to recall and I don't want to write it out explicitly.

"Guess. Come on!" Coco exclaimed excitedly.

"Coco?" If I had been sleeping seconds ago I was wide awake now, eyes pleading with her. My hands went instinctively to her waist to push her off only to recoil back. "For the love of god please get off me."

"Yes! Coco, please!" One rabbit Faunus came to my rescue, grabbing her teammate under the arms and pulling her off. "You can't _do_ things like that!"

"Oh sweet, innocent little bun." Coco patted her on the cheek with a condescending hand. "Never change you cinnamon roll."

I immediately snapped into a sitting position and hunched over like my stomach was hurting. A quick glance helped reassure me that maybe it was just Coco's behavior that had everyone, me included, so flustered. Compression shorts and jeans for the win, my guys. The perfect combo. Nevertheless I still sat where I was, not quite confident yet that I should stand.

"You still haven't guessed yet. Guess what!" Coco grinned.

"What?" I duly replied.

"You're no fun," Coco pouted crossing her arms under her breasts. "It's Cardin! Cardin got expelled!"

"I know."

"Wow, you really know how to kill my mood Foray."

"Yes," I deadpanned.

"Well come on! We've got to celebrate this momentous occasion," Coco winked. "Let's go. I can't let you be a miserable piece of shit all your life! Up, up, up!"

At this the gunner hauled me to my feet, but thankfully the problem had (mostly) resolved itself by then. I was told in no unceremonious terms that I had half an hour to get ready to head into Vale. There the little group that I had gathered would be, and I quote, 'shown a good time' on Coco's dollar. Thankfully the awkward moment has passed and after a little small talk and joking with everyone I was left to my own devices. Immediately, I thought back to the weird dream that I had just been woken from.

 _Salem. Salem. That sounds familiar,_ I mused as I got freshened up. _Oh, right. Salem witch trials. It's a shame someone so beautiful had that kind of connotation attached to her name. I wonder what she wanted to talk about?_

At this I had to pause and shake my head. There was no reason to dwell on a dream so deeply. It was a dream, and nothing more. Something my mind had made up just like the white room and all its fillings. Salem was in my head, a creation of my subconscious.

Oh I wish. Looking back, it would have been better had I just died in the plane crash. Or I wish Torchwick's bullet had let me bleed out. That's not to say I've given up, but it would have been easier.

Far easier.

* * *

 **A/N: Welp. So that's a thing. Salem was a long time coming, but it suits me nicer to have her look normal instead of having the whole "don't judge me for my appearance" conversation. Thanks RT. This whole chapter has been written and re-written too, and gutted several times from approaching 7,000 words down to 1,000 or less. Having taken a nice long look at it, I think I've been struggling with pace and purpose in some of the writing. Hopefully I'm on the track to fix that.**

 **But yeah, on a personal note I've been having a really rough go of it for most of this year. I'll keep the details to myself. On the bright side, I finally understand depression real well. Jeez that's dark, but hopefully I'm on the up and up. I've started the next chapter and I still have plans for more after that, so… come rain or shine, at least know it's not dead.**

 **On a lighter note, enjoy this and more to come. Catch you on the flip side!**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Light hearted whimsy, heart wrenching anguish, stone cold dickery, and a blue ball fight scene. Salem has yet to make her re-appearance, Blake is suss of the white boy, and beginner one is not prepared to fight beginner two. Coco continues her mission to make it last more than four hours and Velvet plays good cop bad cop.**

 **We've got it all folks. Strap in.**

* * *

"So, are you and Coco…" Jaune trailed off, glancing at the woman in question who was in the middle of showing Pyrrha how to put spin on a bowling ball. "At the risk of sounding like Nora, together - together?"

"No," I hissed at him, hiding behind my vanilla milkshake.

"Oh. I just thought because, you know-"

"No!" I took a sip of the thick, rich beverage to avoid answering anymore questions. A mistake, as it turned out. Not only did the taste just bring me back hints of the kiss Coco had stolen, but Jaune's reminder of what I woke up to now occupied my mind.

"Are you sure?" teased the faunus to my right. Velvet. _Teasing._

"Nothing's going on." My case might have had more credibility had not my face and neck been flushed bright red. Instead I sank lower behind my drink as if it could hide me. "Please no more, guys."

My awkward behavior garnered some laughter that soon turned to cheers as Pyrrha hit her third strike in a row. I just sunk even lower until only my burning ears showed. It just wasn't fair. Pyrrha, the invincible wonder-champion, had never gone bowling before. Not one to let something like that slow her down, the Mistralian had taken two warm-up frames and ever since then had only scored strikes and spares.

Coco, surprisingly, was competing for top spot with Pyrrha. If you had stopped me and asked for a list of activities Coco was into fashion design, shopping sprees, cursing like a sailor, and mass destruction would have been my top guesses. Bowling would not have entered anywhere on that list. And yet here she was holding out a lead against the Greek demigod herself.

Below them, Velvet, Jaune and I were part of our own 'best of the rest' competition. Velvet and I had gone bowling before but neither of us was particularly good at the game. Jaune had apparently bowled only once or twice because none of his seven sisters ever wanted to. You heard me correctly. _Seven_ sisters. That was an impressive revelation that monopolized the conversation for a while.

Overall though, despite my lack of skill and the occasional teasing over Coco's behavior towards me I thoroughly enjoyed the evening. The bowling alley was a hidden dive somewhere in Vale with it's own little kitchen that served up greasy fries, juicy burgers, and thick milkshakes which we all were enjoying.

"Tell Velvet just because she ate all her fries she can't steal mine," I told Coco through my own mouthful of potato.

"C'mon, hotshot. If you get at least a spare, you've got a chance of taking third from Jaune." A fourteen pound ball passed from Coco's hands to mine and I pretended to size up the lane while finishing the fries in my mouth.

 _Easy enough. Just look where you want it to go and follow through._

One step. Two. Right hand swings through and releases the ball. Right leg crosses behind the left because… it works better that way? That's what the pros do, I think. And if the pros do it, it must work.

Probably.

"Oh come on!" I threw my hands up in exasperation as for the umpteenth time the ball skittered off to one side and only managed to take out three in the left corner.

"Once again I ask; do you need the rails up so you can bounce it around?" Coco teased.

On the other end of the spectrum, Pyrrha's endless optimism tried to buoy me up. "It's okay Glen! You only need to hit seven more. You can do it!" She clapped her hands a couple times to emphasize her support.

My main opponent had other ideas. "Nooo. You're going to miss! Let me beat you!"

"Jaune!"

"I'm your teammate Pyrrha! You should be supporting me," Jaune complained.

Pyrrha struggled for a second before shrugging. "I hope you both… tie?"

I just rolled my eyes and laughed lightly at her attempts to please both of, picking up the ball that had been returned to me. "Okay. Watch this, Jaune, as I spell out your demise with this spare."

"You do understand that he's still winning if you do make the spare, right?"

"I _know_ , Coco." Lining up, I relaxed into the next throw and sent it flying down the middle of the lane. "But that won't be a problem, because that is a spare for sure!"

Flashing by in a mottled orange blur, the bowling ball hit with deadly precision just off-center. The pins scattered wildly, ricocheting off in all directions like a herd of frightened cats. "Yes! Suck it - No! No, no that's absolute bull!" One of the still tumbling pins had hit another just right and ended up standing upright again.

Wobbling. But standing.

"Yeah!" Jaune stuck out one hand to seal the victory, a grin on his face. "How do you like them apples?"

"You got lucky." My hand clasped his own tightly as I couldn't help marveling at my bad luck. "You got so lucky Jaune. We're going to have a rematch sometime and I guarantee you won't win that."

Coco couldn't leave it there and had to interject. "So, I couldn't help but notice that you guys are celebrating pretty hard considering you lost to a chick who's never bowled before." She gestured at Pyrrha, who immediately tried to deflect the success she had away from herself in her usual humble fashion.

"I'm sorry."

"No, no it's fine," I reassured her. "At least someone made Coco sweat it out for a little - hey! Velvet!"

"Mmmph?" The faunus' head twisted up guiltily, mouth chock full of fries.

"Those are mine, you thief! I was going to eat those!"

"I'm hungry!" Velvet jumped up and danced back, holding the basket of golden goodness out of reach. "Not all of us got burgers!"

"Vegetarianism is a choice," I shrieked as I made a dive for the fries only to have Velvet pivot, grab my arm, and throw me over her hip and into the booth all without spilling a single fried potato slice.

"Sorry."

In my professional opinion the rabbit didn't look very sorry as she continued to munch on my meal. There was not much I could do amid the laughter of the rest of the group than to once again sulk behind my milkshake. "That's my move," I complained to no one in particular. "That throw. It's mine. Anyone else see that?"

"Excuse me? You're not allowed to fight here." One of the alley attendants had approached the commotion and bravely interceded on my behalf. A regular knight in shining armor, replete in red and white stripes and a face that was half bangs half acne.

"Don't worry, I think we're done here. We've bowled our two games and eaten our meal. Sound good?" Coco looked around for anyone to argue, and seeing none motioned us to follow her. "C'mon guys. Let's head back."

Everyone gathered up the remains of their food, returned the clown shoes, and stepped out into the cool night air of Vale. The night was brightly lit by streetlights that stood all around as silent guardians against the dark. Our whole group sauntered off towards the airship docks to head back to Beacon, chatting and laughing as we did.

"Hey, thanks for taking us all out like that Coco. That was actually a lot of fun."

The fashionista shot me a smug glance. "Of course it was. What else would you expect?"

"A club?" Jaune suggested.

"A _strip_ club." _Smack._ Gingerly I rubbed the back of my head, the earned penalty for my clarification. "Okay, I deserved that."

"Honestly." Coco tossed her hair indignantly, as if there was zero basis for our thoughts. "What kind of team leader would I be if I couldn't bring people together? I can read my team, and since I'm rolling with the virgin squad here I figured booze was out of the question."

The comment drew a variety of embarrassed responses from the group which Coco shot down without mercy. I just shrugged and accepted it. She wasn't wrong, after all.

Her appointment as leader wasn't a misplaced one. Coco's ability to bring people, and quieter people at that, out of their shells was uncanny. Look at her team for example. Velvet was very shy and demure until she warmed up to people and Yatsuhashi, despite being a big person, wasn't a big people person. Yet Coco had brought them together as a tight knit group even though she and Fox were almost polar opposites of the two. Even Pyrrha and Jaune, not the most socially confident people, were getting into the banter like we'd been a tight knit group all our lives.

 _She's bold, forward, and crass, but somehow she makes it work._ I sighed internally as my thoughts on Coco's leadership reminded me of my impending duty. _I wish it would be that easy for me. Unfortunately, I doubt it will be. 'Hi, my name's Glen! Let's hold hands and - ow! Ow! Oh god please stop!' Yeah, that sounds about right._

"Well, we have to thank you too Glen," Pyrrha added gratefully. "You're the one who helped stop Cardin. Without you starting this I know he'd just keep getting worse. So thank you."

"Yeah, really. I'm not expelled, which I was so scared of that I couldn't do anything until you gave me a way out. So, thanks Glen," Jaune chimed in.

Coco even added on to the thanks in her own way. "Well, it saves me the trouble of kicking his ass. You've done the bun a solid, sooo… not to bad, I suppose."

"You're welcome guys. I'm just glad I could help." I had to pause and raise a solitary eyebrow at the fashionista. "Even you, Coco. I got hurt by him too, so it worked out for all of us. And I have to say, I'm glad we got to spend some time together tonight getting to know each other better."

"That's another 'thank you Coco'"

"Shut up, Coco," I replied playfully only to get put into a headlock. I entertained it for a second before breaking out - only to find I couldn't. No matter how I twisted or turned, I could not escape the vice that encircled my neck. "Uh, Coco?'

"Mmhmm?"

"Let me go please?"

Coco tapped a finger to her lips. "Fine. But you owe me one."

"Yeah! You got it." Finally released, I ran my fingers through my hair a couple times to restyle it the way I wanted.

"Trouble, Glen?" Jaune grinned.

"Nope," I sighed. "After spending so much time sparring Yang my ego doesn't really care if a girl can kick my butt."

"Amen," the knight laughed.

 _That's right; I'm going to be expected to participate in sparring matches with all the first years - including Jaune and Pyrrha. Damn._

Those kinds of thoughts came flooding back and set my mood for the rest of the trip up to Beacon. I thought I had hidden it well, but I must have shown more than I thought because Velvet pulled me aside by their dorm room - though not before Coco got her last kicks in.

Right outside her room the fashionista said her good nights before pulling me into a hug. Not just a friendly hug, mind you. I couldn't help but feel the heat off her curvy figure as it melded into mine in a way that was incredibly sexual and certainly set my mind racing. Instinctively my hands wrapped around the small of her back as hers managed to laced their way around my neck. "Remember, you owe me one." The sensual whisper in my ear only left me feeling hot and bothered, and the look Coco shot as we pulled apart let me know she was all to aware of the effect she had on me.

 _She is going to be the death of me, I just know it._

Finally when we were alone Velvet spoke up. "Hey, Glen? Can I… ask you something?"

"Sure thing." A pregnant moment followed where Velvet shuffled back and forth glancing at her closed door.

"Someplace more private?"

"Okay. Lead the way."

Consider my curiosity piqued. As Velvet tiptoed silently through the halls and out onto the buildings roofs, I couldn't help but wonder what was so important that we had to come and be completely alone. Part of my mind danced towards areas where Coco might have taken it. Really though, can you blame me given the events of the past few days? The last few _minutes,_ even.

Unfortunately a larger more reasonable part of me felt nervous. I'm not sure exactly why the alarm bells were going off in my head. Maybe because this was a Velvet 'we need to talk'? And as we all know, almost nothing good comes after the words, 'we need to talk'.

On the roof of the Beacon dorms, I could look across the courtyard to see the large clock tower that housed Ozpin dominate the school skyline. The dark outlines against a starry sky was contrasted by the giant pendulums of the clock which seemed to reflect a greenish hue.

After a few seconds of silence, I stuck my hands in my pockets and decided to get the ball rolling. "Man, the sky is absolutely gorgeous. If you don't look towards Vale there's hardly any light pollution. There's so many stars out." It was just an idle comment to break the ice, but I truly meant it.

"They are beautiful," Velvet murmured softly. I noticed she was looking sideways at me, but when I turned to make eye contact she stared down at her feet and kicked a pebble around.

Well if the roundabout method wasn't going to work, more direct action would have to be taken. "Why'd you bring me up here?"

"I - I just… I wanted to ask you about what you did with Cardin." Velvet's slight stammer was back, making me worry that she was feeling uncertain. "I know you spearheaded it. But I… well I wanted to ask…" There was a long pause before Velvet seemed to switch topics. "Do you remember not to long ago when I asked you not to help Coco get revenge? Because I knew she would want to."

"Yes? I didn't help her get revenge though. I promise she's not just pretending it was my idea to keep me from your wrath," I joked.

"Then… was this you getting revenge on him?"

The question froze me up, not only because I'd been avoiding it but I hadn't expected to have to answer to anyone but myself.

"I… no, I wasn't getting revenge on him. I was just helping Jaune. You heard about what was going on with him right?"

"I gathered he had forged his transcripts and Cardin threatened to revealed it."

I nodded, thumbs fiddling with my belt loops. "Yeah, pretty much. I just helped him get out of that blackmail. Plus Cardin really was not just breaking the academic rules but physically and emotionally ragging on everyone he crossed."

"So it was just about doing what was right."

"I guess."

"Then why not let Jaune get expelled too?"

Velvet's pointed question left me with an ever growing pit in my stomach. She may have been quiet, but she was certainly no idiot. "Well… come on, Velvet. That's hardly the same thing."

"You're right. One is a bully, and the other is under-qualified and could potentially get people killed because of it."

"Jaune can be trained up-"

"And Cardin could have been given a chance to change too. But now he won't get to because he's been thrown out."

I could no longer look Velvet in the eye as she dredged up all the doubts and guilt I felt along with my own fears of joining team CRDL. "So what? The solution is to get Jaune kicked out too?"

"No. That's not what I'm saying. I just want to know why you did it, Glen."

There was something in her voice that made me a little bolder, enough to raise my head to make eye contact again. She wasn't angry, nor was she accusing. If anything she sounded… worried. The reflection of that in her eyes tugged at my heartstrings and caused me to duck my head again.

"Glen?"

There was something I wanted to say, to reveal my innermost thoughts so that at least someone else knew. But the shame and fear locked my throat up and nothing would come out.

"I asked you not to take revenge for me."

There was a longer moment of silence where I flopped my mouth open and shut several times, trying to say something but nothing would come out. The crunch of loose gravel as Velvet turned to leave finally got me to say one sentence.

"It wasn't for you." My voice, barely a whisper, stopped the boots. "It was, but it wasn't." The roof in my vision began to swim and I had to sit down or risk falling.

"What do you mean?" Velvet asked softly as she sat beside me.

The quiet hung around a moment more as my lips loosened, finally cracking a dam I didn't realize existed.

"I don't feel like me, Velvet. I just feel like me going through the motions of what I know I should act like. Just harboring all this…" I gestured vaguely at my chest, not sure what description would be adequate.

"Hurt?"

"I lost my family." Throughout my voice had been constricted, but now it finally cracked into a higher octave as I tried to speak and fight back tears at the same time. "And it hurts so much, all the time, and it doesn't really go away. I can forget about it by working out, or sparring, or hanging out with you guys but it's not a real fix. I still have to hold it all in and put on a face of what I'm supposed to be while it just festers inside."

"But for who?" Velvet softly asked. "Why do you need to pretend you're not hurt?"

"I don't know," I cried, throwing my hands up. "No one. Me, maybe. To feel normal, like I was with my family. I was always the strong one, the even keeled one, the easygoing dude who couldn't be rattled by anything. And that's still kind of who I am, but the amount of _shit_ that I have to hold inside has just grown exponentially larger. And I guess…" Shuddering, I drew in a deep breath and slowly let it out as I fought down my emotion. "I guess Cardin was just the last straw."

Velvet was quiet now, the only real indication that she was still there was when her shoulder would brush against mine. "He just became a target for all that when he added more fear and pain into the mix by making me fear for my life. I thought he might be a justified target I could feel good about getting rid of. Like… if I couldn't stop all the other pain in my life at least I could stop _this._ And you don't need to tell me that it was a bad idea. I just feel more hollowed out now. Cardin's life has been wrecked thanks to me, and sure it'll make some people feel better but I just feel so wrong for doing it. It's not me to do something like that."

"Oh Glen." Velvet shuffled around so she was facing me, and drew me slowly into a hug. It was all I could do to return it and just bury my head in her shoulder.

"I'm sorry." My voice was muffled in the flannel shirt that Velvet had worn for the night out. "I'm so sorry Velvet. I know I promised not to get revenge and then I turn around and do… this."

"Do you know why I asked you not to?" I felt the question vibrate through her collarbone as much as heard it. I shook my head against the cloth, and Velvet clutched me tighter.

"Because I've seen people very close to me walk down that path and it ends badly," she whispered. "I know you've been hurting for a long time because I saw it when you first arrived and realized you were alone. That doesn't go away, I know. But in all that time, I've gotten to see a lot of who you are. There's so much good in you and I… I care about you enough that I don't want to see it get lost."

"Thanks," I whispered, after a choked second of silence. "I don't… want to lose myself either."

We stayed like that, huddled together for who knows how long. Eventually, Velvet began to hum a simple melody that was soft and sweet. I let the music just wash over me until I could hold back no longer and joined in with a harmony. For a cycle or two that continued until Velvet couldn't help but laugh.

"That feels weird," she giggled. "Your whole body, like, buzzes when you sing that low."

"My bad." A watery smile cracked out and I finally leaned back, breaking up the embrace. "I think any higher and I'd just travel back to puberty with all the voice cracks."

She laughed lightly at that, brushing a sleeve across her own eyes. "Well, you seem to be feeling a little better."

"A little, yeah."

"I'm glad I could help."

"You didn't have to." When she tried to respond, I instead cut her off. "You really didn't. I, you know, did … that to Cardin even though I knew you wouldn't like it. But you didn't write me off. You stuck with me and ended up helping me unburden myself a bit, I guess."

"I'm just happy you trusted me to." Velvet shyly looked away, her hair falling over her face.

The faunus girl was so genuine in her care and compassion that I couldn't help but feel more ashamed. "God, I don't deserve a friend like you," I murmured.

"Don't sell yourself short." Velvet's head shot up quickly, a small frown tugging at her lips. "You deserve a lot."

"I'm sure I do," I repeated with a hint of sarcasm.

"No, Glen. In the best way." At my soft snort of derision, her eyebrows pinched together. "Glen. You are the guy who was friendly to Coco and I when you weren't even sure we were real. And - and when you found out you lost your family, I know you tried to hide how sad you were every time I walked in with a meal. Or how about when you were shot and bleeding to death? You calmed us down by cracking jokes even though you were in pain. You were _dying_ and still trying to cheer us up. And then there's Ruby and Yang. Do you know how highly they both speak of you when you're not around?"

"Velvet…" I managed, but this time it was my turn to be cut off.

"No really, Glen. You've barely interacted with Ruby at all and I think she's convinced you're now her adopted older brother. I'm serious! Then what about in the cafeteria, when Cardin was picking on me? You stepped in and helped even though you knew it would paint a target on your back. You've done all that - all that and more - _despite_ the weight on your shoulders. So you made a mistake in dealing with Cardin, but you understand it and regret it. It doesn't make you worthless, it makes you human."

When Velvet finished, I had no words left that I could say. Not for lack of trying let me tell you that much. I desperately wanted some eloquent phrase to burst forth that would adequately be able to convey how touched I was by her defense of me but nothing would come. Instead I just sat there struck dumb by her observations.

"I really don't have the words," I finally managed, and only then because it was the honest truth. Not eloquent, but adequate. "Velvet, I…" Even the words 'thank you' died in my mouth. It was too much for me to accept all at once.

"You don't have to say anything. You've done enough," she huffed. Her ears flicked around and then laid against her hair as some redness came back into her cheeks. "I just… t-that's all I have to say."

This time when I smiled it finally felt like the genuine article. There was… a lightness in me that hadn't been present for a while. No, lightness isn't quite accurate. It was a respite from the loneliness I'd felt since day one. Finally, someone knew me. Not completely, but I'd put a lot of myself out there. The hurts, the fears, the insecurities and mistakes; a good amount of that came out and I wasn't rejected or pushed away. Instead I was drawn in closer. Finally, just maybe, I had someone who I could turn to when all the chips were down. Someone who, despite the mistakes I had or would make, would still care about me.

"Velvet you incredible human being," I grinned. "I don't know that I can thank you enough for this gift that you've given me."

"I didn't do that much," she protested. "And not to be pedantic but… I'm a Faunus."

"To-may-to, to-mah-to." Velvet squeaked as I hauled her to her feet and swept her into a tight hug. "You're an incredible person and I'm privileged to know you."

"Thanks," she gasped as I released her. Her shy nature seemed to have come back more to the fore, as she pulled her hands back into her sleeves and glanced down with pink cheeks - something I found incredibly endearing, by the way. "I know Coco thinks the same too, she just… she wouldn't say it like that."

"Oh god." An audible slap echoed as a hand hit my forehead and slowly dragged down my face. "She wouldn't express it by throwing herself at me, would she?"

"Not necessarily," Velvet giggled. "I think that just means she's into you."

"Yeah, message received. Jesus," I groaned. "The whole... everything is way outside my sphere of comfort and I don't know what to do."

"Well, do you like her too?"

"I don't know. She's fun to hang out with and she's really attractive, but… I don't know. It's kind of shifted gears really fast for me here."

"I think that answers the question though."

"But it doesn't. Attractive does not attraction make."

"But you like hanging out with her too."

" _Listen._ " I grabbed Velvet by the shoulders and made my face into a stern caricature. "We are not going to ruin this beautiful moment we just had by discussing the intricacies of the male mind and my love life or lack thereof. That we can save for another time. Okay? Okay, good talk."

"Fine." Velvet conceded the point, gently taking my hands off and moving me towards the door that led inside. "Let's go then."

For the first time in a long time, I was in high spirits as Velvet and I parted ways. The best part was I didn't even have to distract myself with a myriad of other things to achieve that! Sure, nothing had really changed. I still missed my family and regretted ruining Cardin. I still had to go and deal with CRDL in the morning.

 _Or rather, RDL._ I couldn't help but laugh to myself, feeling far more confident than I had earlier that day. _Well, they can shove it. I'm coming in hot and this thing's going to work, damn it._

When my head hit the pillow, I barely remembered to set an alarm before passing out cold. No mystery appearances from Salem or even my friendly body double; or at least not that I could remember anyway. Screw you REM cycle. My sleep was going to be deep and uninhibited by any specters.

By the time I awoke to the blaring alarm, I was refreshed and ready to take on what would be my first day of school. Putting on the uniform was nothing new to me despite the clothes themselves being new. Once upon a time I had attended a private school that had a uniform very similar to the one that Beacon required me to wear. Slacks, tie and blazer proved to be no problem.

I gathered up my belongings into a box which mostly consisted of the various outfits Velvet's mom and Coco had saddled me with. The rest was some textbooks that had been provided with the day before, which doubtless were for the classes I was now enrolled in.

 _That's almost everything._

The last item to be claimed was my black carry-on backpack that I hadn't touched almost since arrival. Each glance at it and any of the items within was just a painful reminder of the world that I'd lost. It had spent the last months at Beacon squirreled away in the closet I wasn't using as a makeshift bedroom, sitting and waiting for the day it would be reclaimed.

 _Or relocated, more like._

I completed my task of gathering together everything that I needed only to hear a knock at the door. With impeccable timing, I opened the door to the ever stern face of Ms. Goodwitch. "Good morning, Mister Foray. I'll be helping escort you over to your new room and introduce you to your teammates." As always, her tone was clipped and professional. "Are you ready?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Good. Let's be on our way then."

Following the headmistress through the corridors of the school, I plodded along silently as uncertainty built in me once again. As we ended up on a floor near where teams SYBR and JNPR lived, I thanked my lucky stars that I at least had the intimidating Ms. Goodwitch there to make my formal introduction and instill at least a temporary respect for my appointment.

 _Thud thud thud._

The hand of fate fell upon the door in front of me, which would soon become my home for at least a little while. When there was no quick answer, Ms. Goodwitch couldn't help but pinch the bridge of her nose before trying again. Eventually the third beating got a response, and the RDL piled out in a half-put together mess. They looked as if they had been awakened by the first knock and had rushed to get their uniforms on - which was probably exactly what had happened.

"Thank you." The ice-cold tone the headmistress took made all three students stand at attention, as if that would somehow reverse the ire they had earned. "I appreciate you all being ready at the time I asked of you. If you would be so kind as to welcome your new team member and leader, Mister Glen Foray."

All three pairs of eyes swiveled upon me. There was a second of delay, and then the silver one couldn't contain himself as he recognized me.

"What is this bullshit?"

"Watch your tone Mister Lark," snapped Ms. Goodwitch. "Like it or not he is going to be your leader, understand me?"

"No way!" the brown one echoed.

"So Cardin gets kicked out yesterday out of nowhere and you told us we could either accept a new leader or all be set back a year. But him?" Lark crossed his arms and stared down at me like I was something off his shoe. "We might as well be set back a year anyway."

"Enough!" Ms. Goodwitch barked. "Glen, this is Sky Lark, Dove Bronzewing, and Russel Thrush of team CRDL. CRDL, this is Glen Foray. I believe you are all familiar. I have two orders of business for you all. Firstly, by the end of the school week you will receive a new name to indicate the change in personnel. Secondly, and more importantly, I expect you all to set aside your differences and work together. Am I clear?"

"Yes Ms. Goodwitch." The words may have been what she wished to hear, but the dirty looks being shot my way let me know they hardly meant it.

"I expect to see you all later today - and not in my office as a result of a fight you all got into. Good day." With that the headmistress turned on her heels and strode away, already working on her scroll.

"What a frigid bitch," grumbled Sky once the menacing figure was far enough away. "She's like a grown up version of the Schnee."

Dove shrugged. "I'd still do her though."

"Which one?"

"Both."

"If you had to pick?"

"Goodwitch." Dove made a clear gesture around his chest, to which Sky to cackled in response.

 _Jesus this is already unbearable,_ I moaned internally. _I can't take the thought of being shoved inside a middle school locker room for months._

I tried to slip past them all into the room hoping they would just let me get to it. Instead, the three amigos slid over and got in my way. Was I expecting anything different? No, I wasn't. And yet somehow I still was disappointed.

"You dropped something," sneered Sky, swatting my box out of my hands.

There was nothing but clothes and textbooks, so it hit the ground with a loud thud but little else happened. _Okay. Nothing for it then._ Calmly I pushed the box to the side and took off my backpack to lay next to it.

"Okay. So, we're going to do this here?" All three faces registered surprise, as if they had anticipated a much different reaction. "Fine then. Let's have it all out. Come on."

 _Okay. This is going to be hard to get right. If I'm capitulant now they're just going to walk all over me and I'll never have any respect much less authority. At the same time, if I'm too combative they're just going to rebel against that._

"Listen." Sky stepped up and got in my face, trying to use his height advantage to intimidate me. "You're not the leader of this team. You're not even a real member of the team. We're not going to follow some prissy little bitch that cries when he sees a Grimm."

I swallowed down my anger and kept my appearance neutral. "I don't think you know what prissy means, but fair enough. Next?"

"What the fuck?"

"Come on. What're all the problems you have with me? Tell me."

"No, what did you say bitch?"

I couldn't help a sigh escape my lips. "Yes, I know. We've established that I'm a bitch. I'm asking if there's anything else." The silence that followed dragged on a bit too long as I could see each one of their faces reflecting their surprise. If you can imagine a wolf ready to pounce on a deer only to find his prey flipping him the bird, you can visualize the looks I was getting. "Really? That's all you've got? I'm a female dog? Come on, I thought you'd have a little more for me."

"You're a dickless coward," tried Dove.

"Yes. What gave it away? Was it the lack of a front bump? I'll let you in on a secret; it just fell off one day because of my furious masturbation. Still have two working balls though which makes it hard to argue against those child support payments."

The silence was deafening.

"So we've established that I have no penis and I'm a bitch. I'll include coward too, even though it was implied in the first insult. Anything else?"

Finally Sky responded by shoving me away from him. "Oum, you're fucking weird."

"A little more original, but I won't dispute it. Now that it's all out in the open, let me say two things. I know you just lost a friend, and that sucks. On top of that you got me as your leader, which doubly sucks. Believe me, I'm sure no one is happy about this but we're just going to have to work with it. And Sky, you're right in a way."

"I am?"

"Yes. I've done nothing to earn this spot as leader and you've got no reason to respect me for it. I've got a lot to learn, but it's my goal - however ridiculous it may be - to earn some of that respect." I bent over and slung the backpack over one shoulder and picked up the box containing the rest of my stuff, edging my way through the shell shocked group. "Secondly, you guys might want to learn to recognize sarcasm. Kay? Kay."

It was all I could do not to bust out into a maniacal laugh as I unpacked my stuff, which mostly just involved shoving the box and bag under my bed. The roof last night must have had even more of an impact than I thought because this was me in bully prime. So many had tried over the years, and so many had fallen to my ironclad defense of witticisms, sarcasm, and ability to shrug off anything they did. That Glen that was surging strongly through my veins and it felt good.

"Alright." Conferring with the new schedule on my scroll, I found the first class of the day. "We've got Grimm studies with Professor Port at ten, and Combat lab right after. Anyone want to lead the way to the first class?"

"Not likely. We're just going to skip out on that," snarked Dove.

"That's okay. I think I can find the way. It's the one with the Grimm in it right? Right, I thought so. I'll see you all there." Imaginary bullets hit each one of them as my finger guns fired rapidly. "Come on boys. Let's vamanos."

By some small miracle when I reached the classroom I wasn't alone. Whatever reason they did it, I didn't care. When I chose my seat, they all went and sat elsewhere - but they were here and that was what mattered. I was winning the battle and the war.

"Yo, Glen!" Yang waved cheerily and slid into the seat next to me. "How ya doin' buddy?"

"Better than expected, all things considered." I grinned at my sparring partner as the rest of team SYBR sat down.

"Excuse me, but what are you doing here?" The haughty tones of the resident heiress cut in as she stared me down.

"I'm here for the jazzercise class. Is this not it?"

Yang held up a hand for a fist-bump which I obliged happily. "Way to stick it to the Ice Queen, short stack."

"Fine," Weiss sniffed, turning up her nose. "Don't tell me. I guess I'm the only one who's interested as to why he's attending one of our classes in uniform."

"Yeah, short stack. Much as I hate to side with Weiss-cream here on anything, what's the dealio?"

Red, yellow, and white stared at me expectantly as Blake just kept on reading.

"That is a long story, but I will summarize as briefly as possible. In short, I am now the leader of team CRDL."

If I'm honest, given my proclivity for deadpan humor and sarcasm, the result was pretty much what I would have expected. All three girls rolled their eyes almost in unison, some form of 'yeah right' coming from their mouths. Honestly, I found some smug satisfaction in their disbelief. I couldn't wait for their reactions when they found out I wasn't joking.

"Fine, fine. Don't believe me then."

"Fine, I won't." Yang just stuck her tongue out at me and looked ready to say more when the man of the hour arrived.

"Good morning students!" Professor Port bellowed as he entered the lecture hall. "It is a fine day, is it not? The air was so crisp this morning - which reminded me of another morning when I was much younger! On that day my grandmother had sent me out to fish for trout in the local stream when I ran smack into a pack of Beowulf's."

For the next hour I forgot all my woes as this legend, this living meme, this paragon of tall tales fed my ears audio ambrosia. A deep, bombastic voice telling me a story about how he vanquished seven Nevermore with a cheese grater and dish soap? That was _gold._ How could anybody fall asleep in this class? All too soon the bell rang interrupting a confused creep that had been stuck into a dishwasher.

"But that's a story for another time! Remember students, your essays are due next Thursday!"

I barely managed to hold it together as I staggered out of the classroom, doubling over in silent peals of laughter as soon as I cleared the door. "Oh Christ on a bike," I wheezed. "Why do you sleep through that class? How could you? That was the most amazing hour of my life!"

"He doesn't tell us anything useful," Yang shrugged. "And don't you think you're overreacting a little?"

"He told us he tricked a bandit tribe into releasing their hostages by pretending to be a red cabbage stew!" I had to stop and wipe a tear of mirth from my eye. "The part that makes it so funny is I think he believes it too!" At this I couldn't help but laugh again, loosely following them as we made our way through the halls. "So, where's combat class?"

"We're headed there now," Weiss informed me. "But it's only for those of us that are huntresses in training."

"So, being a hunter in training disqualifies you?"

The heiress remained unamused. "Either way, it's not for you."

"Unless I had become the de-facto leader of team CRDL. Right? Then I could join in."

"If you were."

"If only I was," I repeated wistfully. "Good morning Ms. Goodwitch."

The headmistress nodded as we approached the doors to the classroom. "Good morning Mister Foray. I hope you're ready for class?"

"I hope so too ma'am," I smiled, not for the upcoming spars but for the slow change in the faces of team SYBR. Ruby's mouth dropped open in a perfect 'o', Yang looked like she couldn't decide between shock or horror and in the end didn't have to, and Weiss was sucking on a lemon. Most surprisingly, Blake actually looked up from her reading.

"You were serious?" hissed Weiss. "How could you possibly be a team leader?"

"How can you be so happy to be working with those jerk-offs?" Yang followed up immediately.

Blake glanced at me suspiciously. "Why _are_ you their team leader?"

My hands came up quickly to stem the barrage of questions that had begun piling up. "Okay. Um, let's take this one at a time. Because I was available, it's completely unrelated, and because Cardin was expelled. Does that about cover it?"

Judging by the looks I got back it was far less than covered. Before any more questions could be levied at me however, Ruby found her voice and interrupted. "Well, this means you get to spend more time with us right?"

"Probably," I grinned. With such a bright face looking up at me I couldn't help but ruffle her hair just a little. "Thanks for looking on the bright side Ruby."

"And maybe you can help them become better people too!"

"That's a little too bright. In fact it's blindingly bright. I need you to pull back a little sunshine."

As the majority of team SYBR was still reeling from this latest revelation the class was called to order. Immediately the room fell into a dead silence, the only noise being the clack of the headmistress' heels as she marched up to just off the semi-circular platform that would serve as the ring.

"Good morning. Let's not waste any time now. A few announcements before we begin." Her tablet snapped out and she surveyed it briefly. "I would firstly like to remind everyone that elemental dust can only be used in the ring if approved beforehand as a special exception. Secondly, I have made a change to the schedule. The first fight will be Jaune Arc and Glen Foray. After this bout the schedule will continue as normal with Lie Ren and Russel Thrush. Be aware if you were towards the end of today's class there may not be enough time for you."

 _I'm going to fight. First time in the class and I'm going to fight. I don't get to see any fights, I don't get any practice, I don't get any time to acclimatize. Just straight in. Holy Mary Mother of God._

"If the first two pairs would please go get changed, we will get started."

The other three stood and sauntered down to the back of the stage where I for the first time noticed that there were doors that I presumed led to the locker rooms. That would have been useful to know beforehand, as I didn't exactly have a spare set of clothing to change into. Nevertheless I hurried after the three other guys and into the familiar space.

 _Huh. I didn't realize that the locker room for the gym connected to the classroom too._

As the others got changed into their combat gear I rifled around until I found a locker that was unlocked and had a pair of pants that looked like they would fit me. _Losers weepers,_ I thought as I held up the dark blue trunks. _Also, beggars can't be choosers._

I made my way back down the rows until I found Jaune again. "Hey dude, could I use your locker space?"

"Yeah, sure." Jaune strapped a plate of armor on his chest as I stripped down to boxers and the white muscle shirt that was under my uniform. "Man, this is crazy! I had no idea you were going to be joining classes. Why'd that happen?"

"Cardin's expulsion. I'm head of CRDL now."

"No way! I feel sorry for you Glen. Tell you what…"

Jaune's voice trailed off as my mind went elsewhere. _Shoes? No shoes?_ Shoes kept my toes from being stepped on, but these were nice flats that had come with my uniform. There was no grip to them and that was something I wasn't going to sacrifice. _Great. Jaune's got a sword and armor plates on his chest and upper arms. I have no weapon, no shoes, stolen shorts, and the right to bear arms._

Then, bam, the pre-game jitters descended upon me. I could feel my adrenal glands getting warmed up as they began to seep epinephrine into my system in preparation for what was to come. My heart rate began to pick up and I became increasingly twitchy as butterflies flitted around my stomach.

Fortunately that wasn't something I was a stranger to, though the last time they were this bad was in the locker room before we played the number one team for the Alberta provincial box lacrosse championship. As soon as I walked out there and got started I knew that the nerves would be gone and it would just be go time till the end. Sure, I wasn't exactly as versed on fighting people with swords as I was in playing lax but the principle was the same.

 _I hope._

"... and I'm not going to go easy on you just because you helped me out. I know it's your first time and all, but I've only gotten one win so far and I really think that was a fluke." I tuned back in to see Jaune scratching his head. "And by fluke I mean they got too cocky, tripped, and I won by ring out. So, no hard feelings, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. For sure. You too?" My eyes roamed over his equipment, trying to make any last minute deductions that I could.

"Of course. No hard feelings." It took me a second to realize that Jaune was holding out his hand for a shake, which I accepted. Ren and Russell had already left the locker room, so I took that as my cue to follow Jaune back out while trying to come up with a game plan in my head.

 _Okay. He's going to have a reach advantage and a speed advantage, but it's going to take him longer to stop and reverse an attack. That's when I can maybe try and close distance. I think. Damn it I did fencing, not… LARPing or whatever. I don't know how fast he can move the sword. Or how fast he is. I'm just going to have to feel it out, I guess._

At least I was confident I had height and strength on my side. Jaune may have been an inch or so taller than I was, but the guy was built on the slimmer side. He couldn't have weighed more than a buck fifty or sixty. Meanwhile I, with my aura enhanced Yang inspired daily murder sessions, was now pushing towards two hundred - and I kinda don't mean to brag but actually I do - it was some serious muscle. The only question was, would I be able to get past the sword to use it?

"I will be the overseer of this competition. Remember, this will play by tournament rules. Victory can be achieved by submission, ring out, or bringing your opponent's aura below ten percent. Should I call for a stop at any time, both opponents will cease the bout. Are we clear?" Ms. Goodwitch laid out the rules, likely for my benefit, and got a nod from both myself and the blond knight signaling our understanding.

Then, with just a few fateful words, my induction into Beacon's halls truly started.

"Fighters, you may begin."

* * *

 **A/N: Hell yeah. So, here we are. I don't know why this came out so fast… maybe because finals are coming up and I'm a POS who procrastinates hard. This is a little rushed, but I'm also a little rushed and a lot impatient. Forgive me please?**

 **Yeeeeaaaaah.**

 **Hope you enjoy, and I'll catch you on the flip side with some hot guy on guy action!**

 **I don't think that came out right.**


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Another day, another dollar. I do have to ask two things to those who are up to date with the RWBY watching (spoilers):**

 **One: Was that scream when Salem is alone with the meteors falling down just the goddamn best voice acting scream ever? Jesus, it gives me chills to listen to it for the tenth time.**

 **Two: Does not apathy just have the ripest potential for abuse in fanfiction? It makes me want to giggle.**

 **Anyway, enjoy the next installment in WTF am I doing anymore.**

* * *

Jaune drew his sword and rushed me, popping his scabbard into a shield.

 _Of course his scabbard is a shield,_ I groaned. _Why not? Coco has a purse that becomes a minigun. Yang's told me about her bracelets that turn into shotgun-bracers. Ruby has a SCYTHE with a scope that will shoot a cannon round. Why wouldn't it be a shield?_

In some sort of misguided hope that Remnant magically bestowed power akin to the transformers, I glanced at my hands like they would somehow become something else. Like a sword. Or gun. Heck, I'd settle for a toaster. Alas, skin remained skin, and I had to move.

If there was one small blessing it was that compared to Yang I could see Jaune's attacks coming from a mile away. Big wind ups and bigger strikes seemed to be the norm - not really what I was expecting. Given his stature and reach I would have assumed that Jaune would focus around attacks that emphasized stabbing or speed. Not only that, but with every large strike his shield swung completely off to the side and exposed all the areas he was supposed to cover.

If I had any kind of ranged weapon - say a pistol -

 _Let's say a rifle._

A rife, then. With a rifle I could have easily shot as he struck and absolutely lit him up as the shield moved out of the way. Even with bare hands I could see all sorts of openings that I could potentially take advantage of. There was just one, big problem.

I was scared of the sword.

Okay, yeah. Yang had told me often enough that aura could stop cutting tools and even dust rounds. I had even watched enough tournament fights on the Remnet to see it. But it's one thing to say, "Aura can stop a sword!" in your leather chair. It's entirely different to say "Aura can stop a sword!" and then stand there unphased as three feet of razor steel hurtles at you.

 _Oh, but Glen, Yang's been like, punching you and stuff, and you totally haven't been afraid, and also you know aura works because she's like super strong and you didn't really get hurt._

Yeah, okay then bud. But I had already done plenty of the fisticuffs before I ever got aura so it wasn't intimidating to box a busty babe. Again, razor sharp blade of death coming at me. Without any prior experience to the otherwise my brain just sends out the _you have an impending slice and dice inbound_ message and so I kept getting out of the way and not going on the offensive.

There I was, running around like a jackass in a tank top dodging the strikes of a larger armored up individual.

I think Transformers is gonna sue someone.

 _Damn it Yang, why didn't we practice something like this?_ I lamented as I felt the breeze from a vertical cut ripple past my arm. _It would really have been useful. Come on Glen, just trust yourself a little!_

The next time Jaune stepped up for a large overhand strike I launched myself inside his guard. Originally I had just intended to grab his wrist and throw him to the ground from there, but the panicked launch gave me to much momentum to halt. So I didn't.

Instead I dove down like I was going for a cut block, slamming my shoulder into his gut and almost folding him in half. A dull thudding on my back told me where the pommel has struck before I used the knight as some personal impact protection between me and the floor. Immediately I reared up to deliver some punishing blows only to catch the edge of Jaune's shield in my teeth.

 _Aura is saving me a trip to the dentist._

Accidental or intentional, Jaune stunned me long enough to fold his shield flat and wedge the it down in between one of my thighs and his torso. It was all I could to to throw myself up and forward to avoid the hit to my balls as the sheath snapped open to a shield once again. Even so, I was more or less straddling the shield and not Jaune (piss off Coco) leaving little resistance for him to fight as he shoved me off and returned to his feet.

 _Damn, that was a smart play. That was actually a really smart play._ As we circled, I couldn't help but wince a little. Quick I may have been, but that didn't mean my testicles got away scot free. _Maybe he's going to change up his strategy… nope._

Instead Jaune reared back for another huge cut, charging forward with sword overhead. I stepped in to grab his wrist again, only for Jaune this time to swing his shield back in front. The metal plate slammed into my chest and nearly drove the breath from my lungs. The sword followed through half a second later, arcing down with surprising speed.

 _No time like the present for an impromptu stress test._

My right arm wrapped around the back of the shield and clamped down with a vice grip entangling itself in the straps. The other I blindly threw up to protect my head and neck, the blade slamming into the top of my hand before skittering off to the side. It hurt, especially on the pinky finger where it felt the majority of the blow had landed. But, on the bright side, I was just bruised instead of looking at a sword buried halfway down my arm.

It's a small improvement.

Now that I had a more solid hold on Jaune I decided to abuse my weight and strength advantage to get rid of the troublesome shield. Adding my left hand to the already ongoing struggle, I began yanking on the defensive equipment viciously. Pitching all my weight and strength behind these full body assaults I mercilessly ripped Jaune around to keep him off-balance while his sword flailed around and hit me.

Finally his grip weakened and the knight slid across the arena, leaving me with the white shield in hand. _But is it really an advantage?_ I mused. _I already have a big advantage in grappling, and this just keeps me from using at least one of my hands. I could use it as an offensive or defensive weapon - oh, okay. Let's do that then. Try it out and throw it away if it's a liability._

I stalked in on Jaune, each hand holding a strap in preparation for its offensive use. As I got closer I upped my pace and charged in instead of the circling that we had done before. The sudden change combined with a deep roar that ripped out of the back of my throat had Jaune back-peddling as I made contact.

This time, instead of the tackles or takedowns that had slowly become my go-to over the course of my training at Beacon I harkened back to the sport that I was best at. Just before impact I took two power steps that propelled my shoulder nearly through my opponent. Almost immediately after impact the my arms pistoned forward to slam the shield into my opponent in the perfect one-two punch.

Box lacrosse, bro.

Jaune flew back five feet before he hit the floor, and only had time to throw a weak stab as I descended upon him. His sword was mercilessly batted away with a swipe from the shield before I threw that away as well.

Throwing punches when you're pinned to the ground is never optimal, but the knight gave it his best effort. Wading through the blows I grabbed for the back of his head and hauled his upper body upright, punching him in the solar plexus so that he naturally bent over.

My right arm snaked around Jaune's neck and put him into a guillotine hold until he slumped unconscious in my arms.

"That will be match by submission."

Ms. Goodwitch's voice registered, but like she was talking underwater. As Jaune coughed back to life I felt a deep satisfaction in having won this fight.

Let me explain.

I wouldn't say I'm a confrontational or violent guy by nature. Generally the most violent I really want to be is about on the level of passive-aggressive. There's something about contact sports or martial arts that just throws my proclivity for conflict avoidance out the window. My body kept hitting me with a spike of adrenaline every time I pictured Jaune's eyes widening like dinner plates just before impact, and it was so _satisfying._ I'm not cruel, I swear. But it's like when I would wreck kids in lacrosse… they signed up for it, and if they didn't want me to put the hammer down on them they should have been wearing my colors.

Besides, participating in a sanctioned event, with consent, and where there were safety nets in place to prevent serious injury kind of took the pressure off to hold back.

I reached out one hand and grasped onto Jaune's own, pulling him back to his feet. He took a moment bent over to massage his throat and then stood straight up. "Oum Glen, you're a maniac."

"Arc! Foray! If you could spare a moment," barked the headmistress.

"Yes ma'am." We both jumped to attention.

"Arc. You did well to adapt to the situations you found yourself in, but once again I must remind you that your very aggressive and predictable attacks leave you very open. Any decent opponent will see that and take advantage as Mister Foray did."

"Mister Foray." I perked up, waiting to hear why she had to say. I mean, I'd just pulled off a win my first time with no weapon! Surely- "This was not a fight you deserved to win. I understand your circumstances, but there was no finesse to your actions. Without the ability to end fights like you do, you would surely have lost."

For the first time I glanced at the screen displaying our aura amounts and nearly choked. Jaune's aura was still reading around eighty-seven percent, which was surprising, but it wasn't like I had hit him all too much. Most of the heavy blows were really just takedowns.

What shocked me was where I stood. My aura levels read twenty-three. _Twenty three percent._ And I hadn't even taken that much of a beating!

"I would highly recommend you monitor your aura levels and alter your fighting style to compensate. Dismissed!"

My feet pattered across the cold floor as I carried myself back to the locker room. It wasn't until we were sealed away that I finally turned to Jaune and opened my mouth. "Is she always like that?"

"Yeah." Jaune shrugged his way out of his armor, tossing the pieces back into the locker. "She's not really big on compliments. Don't worry, she does it to everyone. Except Pyrrha."

"But that goes without saying."

"Yeah, that goes without saying."

I peeled off the shorts and held them up before flicking them away over my shoulder. "Hey, that was a good fight though. The move you pulled with the shield to get me off you?"

"Yeah." Jaune sheepishly scratched his head. "That was just a spur of the moment type thing. You totally just tossed me around though."

"Eh. Ms. Goodwitch was right. If you'd connected just a few more I'd have been DQed. I tossed you around a bit but I didn't really do much damage."

Jaune and I chatted a bit more as we got dressed and walked out through the halls until we got back into class. There we split, with Jaune going to sit with JNPR while I returned to my seat by SYBR.

"That's what I'm talking about Short Stack," Yang cheered quietly as Ren and Russell started their fight. "First win under your belt."

"Yay Glen!" Ruby jumped me as I tried to squeeze past her, nearly lifting herself off the ground in the process. "I knew you could do it!"

Weiss hummed indifferently. "He almost lost to the weakest fighter in our class. It's hardly anything to be proud of."

"Thank you Yang for the training. And thanks for the support." Ruby grinned up at me as I patted her back. "Blake, as ever your enthusiasm is appreciated."

"Noted," the girl replied duly while flipping from one page to another.

Weiss just silently fumed as I ignored her.

"Hey, we were gonna head into Vale after class on Friday and check out some of the Vytal festival prep. You down?"

"Abso-fruitly." Yang hit me with a high-five that I caught with my left hand, causing me to wince a little. "Ow. That's tender."

"Yay!" Ruby clapped her hands together. "That's going to be the best time ever!"

"Damn straight." I couldn't help a smile spread across my face at Ruby's childlike innocence. "We've got to make it through four more days though."

"You got it!"

Finally released from the smaller girls clutches, I took my seat and watched the rest of the fight unfold. Ren looked to be in complete control of the fight. Both he and Russell used twin blades and both were fast and agile, but the member of team JNPR was just keeping his head. Russell was clearly getting frustrated as the fight went on, causing him to make more mistakes until eventually the match was called.

There were several more matches that I paid attention to in case I ever had to fight them while fending off questions from Ruby and Yang. The questions were mostly about my appointment to team CRDL and how I was dealing with it. Then, towards the end of the class, it happened.

"So." Yang leaned in close, a shit-eating grin on her face. "What about you and Coco?"

"What about us?" I said as casually as I could.

"Rumor has it that you two are sucking face."

Ruby reddened, tugging on her sisters arm. "Yaaang!"

"Hush Ruby, this is gossip."

Well, it had been a little while since my last Coco encounter and my heart rate didn't immediately jump. Instead I controlled both brains to be able to make my way out of this situation. If I denied it immediately, that would be taken as an admission of guilt. That left only one way.

The Glen way.

The sarcastic way.

"Yeah, we've been dating for about a month and change. I'm honestly surprised no one's noticed till now."

You would have thought I dropped a bomb. Yang's eyes widened and her smug grin cracked open. Ruby reddened, Weiss pretended not to be listening in, and Blake hadn't turned a page since the conversation started.

"Seriously?"

If I had been the picture of sincerity before I slowly let the sarcasm creep in. "Oh, I am entirely serious. One might even say deadly serious. Seriously in love."

Yang squinted at me. "I don't think you're being serious."

"How dare you." A hand flew up to my heart as I gasped in shock. "You would question the depths of our love? Why, it was only last week that we went stargazing on the roof."

"Okay, you can stop now."

"I read her an intricate sonnet comparing her to a summer's day, and we shared a small picnic of wine and cheese as we fell asleep in each others arms."

"Glen."

"In fact, it was only yesterday we were discussing our marriage- ow! Christ, Yang. That was just uncalled for."

"Yeah, we'll just agree to disagree." She leaned back again and regarded me suspiciously. "So you and Coco Adel aren't a thing?"

"No, Yang, we're not."

"So you're saying you don't like her?"

"No, Yang, we're not like that. Actually - hold on one second." The girls watched as I pulled my scroll out of my pocket and typed out a message. Barely had I hit send when Yang's scroll buzzed. She pulled her own device out and read the message aloud for all to hear.

"N-O means no."

"Just in case I had to spell it out for you," I smugly finished the joke.

Yang just chuckled. "Nice one, Glenny. I approve."

"Thank you."

"So, if it's not Coco, then who is it?"

"Hmm?"

"Who do you like?"

"Yatsuhashi. I just want him to hold me in his strong manly arms as his deep voice rumbles me to sleep."

She just raised an eyebrow disbelievingly. "His strong manly arms?"

"I think I'd feel safe."

"You're such an idiot."

See kids, when you're not sure what to do, use sarcasm! It works every time. All the time. One hundred percent of the time. In fact, just be sarcastic to everyone all the time.

They'll love you, I swear.

Joking aside, my plan had worked to perfection. Just heat up the sarcasm in a deadpan and you have the perfect recipe for denying not just accusations of love but anything! Or almost anything. Case in point, no one was teasing me over Coco. Unfortunately, Yang had sunk her teeth in and refused to let go without me giving her something.

"In all seriousness though, who do you like?"

"Shan't tell the likes of you."

"Glen-"

"Shan't!"

Yang looked about ready to strangle me. It was a look people often give me, though I can't quite put my finger on why. "I swear I'm going to-" Whatever threat she was about to make, I was spared the graphic details by an unlikely source.

"That will be all for today's class. Remember the critiques I gave and be sure to practice for our session later this week. Glen Foray, if you could stay behind after class for a moment I would like to talk with you. Dismissed!"

The class, which had been daily subdued save for bursts of excitement during the fights, now burst out into excited chatter. Some who recognized me shot me pitying looks that we're mirrored my the words Yang spoke.

"Welp, I guess that's a thing. I'll wait outside to pick up the pieces Goodwitch leaves behind." Her hand clapped down on my shoulder in a reassuring gesture. "Good luck!"

As the rest of the students filed out excitedly, I slowly made my way back down the steps for a second time to face Ms. Goodwitch. A small pot formed in the center of my stomach as her brows drew closer together upon having me in front of her.

"Mister Foray." She paused, carefully considering her words. "I do not… completely agree with the headmaster. Whether you are fit to be a team leader or member of this academy is still to be seen. That said, if you are to continue you will require a weapon of some kind. I would choose something you are familiar with to begin. The headmaster has transferred five thousand lien from the school coffers to facilitate that."

At this my mouth dropped open and I couldn't contain my surprise. _Holy smokes. That's a lot of money to be throwing around._

She just shook her head at my expression. "Spend it wisely. A good weapon is your lifeline, and a lifeline is expensive. That is all for now, Mister Foray. Dismissed."

"Yes ma'am. Thank you so much."

I flew out of the classroom, skipping three steps at a time as I busted through the doors straight into Yang and Ruby. Before they had a chance to ask what she wanted, I couldn't help but open my mouth as the words tumbled out. "Guys, you won't believe this. Ms. Goodwitch gave me five thousand lien to get a weapon!"

"A weapon?" Ruby squealed out loud, pumping a fist into the air. "Oh this is going to be awesome! Do you know what you want? What do you want? Probably close range right? Of course! Oh, can I help you build it? Please?"

Her questions came at me so thick and fast I had trouble keeping up. "I… I'm not sure."

"About what?"

"About any of it yet."

Ruby latched onto one of my arms like a limpet and turned Bambi eyes on me. "You've got to let me help you. Please? Please? Pleeeaase?"

With every word Ruby shifted position, climbing over me as if I was a human jungle gym. Finally she settled in one place, dangling in front of me like a necklace.

Grabbing her under her arms I lifted Ruby up to eye height. "You want to help me with my weapon?"

"Yes!"

"Well, I don't know… you did build Crescent Rose right?"

"Yes! All by myself too!"

I pretended to consider it as Ruby squirmed in anticipation. Full disclosure: of course I was going to accept. I needed help from someone who knew what they were doing, and Ruby seemed to have some serious skills and enthusiasm for the task. When I'd had enough fun teasing her, I set the reaper back on the ground.

"Alright, fine. You can help me if you want to. Okay?"

"Yes!" Ruby cheered and danced around before whipping out her scroll. "Okay. Let's start with the basics. I'm thinking we'll start with a simple twin shift since you're new to this, but we need to figure out two different weapons to combine."

"And some armor maybe," I chipped in.

"Yeah, but first the weapon! That's going to be the hardest. So tell me what you can use! First things to come to mind! Go go go-"

"Uhh, shotgun and a… ahhhh, a lacrosse stick."

"Okay." Ruby furiously scribbles some notes on her pad before looking up again. "What's a lacrosse stick?"

"Well, it's not really a weapon…" I tried sheepishly. "I'll think of something else."

"No! Tell me!" Ruby shoved her scroll into my hands. "Describe it! Draw it!"

"Okay! I'll do it. Just give me a second." Carried away by Ruby's infectious enthusiasm, I couldn't help but do my best. My finger described a gourd-like shape on the tablet. "I think I remember the measurements. It's three inches wide at the small end for about five inches, then… comes out to six for the last five kinda like this. It's a semi-flexible plastic. Then it attaches to a metal pole either three or six feet long. Then there's a net strung from the head so you can catch and throw a rubber ball just about two and a half inches in diameter."

Ruby took the scroll back and studied my rough technical drawing intensely. "Hmm. Hmm… okay, if we did this, and then… I'd have to do this… something like… I can make that work..."

Yang put her hands on her siblings shoulders as the younger girl continued to scribble madly on the scroll while muttering to herself. "Don't worry, it shouldn't take her too long to figure something out. You'll see."

I just nodded as I watched my weapon-smith go to work.

"Say thank you Glen!"

"Thanks." Ruby responded at the blonde's prodding but otherwise remained engrossed in what she was doing.

"Well, see you around short stack. I'm sure you won't be able to shake her once she's come up with something solid. Till then good luck with those jerks, kay?"

"You got it. Tell your sister thanks from me whenever she comes up for breath."

"Sure thing Glen."

The next few days passed relatively uneventfully. Of course, relatively being the operative term.

In terms of my newfound team, they hadn't given me any real problems. There were little incidents that stacked up almost constantly, like them spilling some of my food, verbal jabs, or most annoyingly waking me up in the middle of the night. The pranks weren't enjoyable at all but they were nowhere close to anything Cardin had tried in the past. It was mostly petty and just designed to needle me to death.

In the meantime, I was figuring the group out. With big daddy Cardin out of the picture, Sky Lark had stepped up as the main antagonist. Dove was content to follow him, while Russell was seemingly undecided. He hadn't stuck up for me yet but he didn't outright participate in the taunting either.

That wasn't the lowlight of the week though. The real lowlight was the next combat class that rolled around. This time, I was paired up against Yang. I felt okay about that. Sure she had her weapons now, and I still didn't have any - but I'd fought her before. Fought her plenty. I even had Yang practice with real weapons in the training sessions leading up to it so I could get used to swords and guns. Even though it was likely that she would beat me, I thought I might put on a good showing.

You ever just look back on something and wonder how it could have gone so wrong?

Jaune and Yang were not even on the same fucking planet. Jaune and I had a fight that lasted a few minutes and which could have gone either way. Yang put me into a shallow grave in under thirty seconds. I think I slipped one of her kicks - one - and that's because her kicks weren't rocket powered like her elbows or fists, although half the time she used the recoil to spin faster.

Her finishing blow was a punch to the gut that left me sucking wind for longer than the entire fight had gone on. Then, of course, I was relentlessly teased by both the buxom blonde and my teammates. One was all in good fun, the other was more serious.

They were good times, I tell you. Good times. Honestly, I was just happy to leave the stage with my nose straight, all teeth accounted for, and not on a stretcher.

Finally, after the grueling week of fights and homework the promised day arrived. When I showed up at the bullhead docks for the trip into Vale though, only three members of SYBR were there to greet me.

"What happened to Ruby?"

"She's working on your weapon. Has most of the components figured out, but she just wouldn't leave the thing to come down with us," answered Yang. She looped an arm around my shoulders easily and pulled me to the bullhead. "Come on! We're gonna have fun."

Blake was drawn in a second later on the other side, doing her best to look miserable. "Fun."

"Oh, she's just cranky because we made her leave her books behind."

"Hate you."

"Aww, she's so sweet."

Blake just sighed and accepted the attentions of her partner as we boarded the ship. The transport hummed into the air, gliding gently down over the lake as we approached the city. The leaves were starting to fall from the trees, leaving reddish - gold carpets that surrounded the walls of Vale and trickled through its streets. It was a lovely sight, and one I had to just admire for a moment.

As we stepped off the transport into the city, I saw almost nothing special. There were some banners here and there, some flyers, but nothing else to indicate the Vytal festival that was supposed to be all the rage.

"So, I have to ask… what are we coming to look at? And what is the Vytal festival? If anyone could explain those to me, that'd be just fine."

Predictably Weiss was the first to get her kicks in. "Of course you don't know what the Vytal festival is. Let me explain this simply for you; the festival is an event that is hosted once every two years by one of the kingdoms. It brings together the cultures of the kingdoms peacefully, culminating in a tournament starring the huntsmen in training from each kingdom."

 _Let's play a drinking game. Every time Weiss says 'kingdom', you take a shot._

"That's not complicated."

A starry look fell upon Weiss, one that I had not seen before. "Oh, but it is! The amount of planning and organization that goes into these events is staggering! It starts months in advance of any actual festivities as each kingdom strives to outdo the other."

 _Shot. That's four._

"You make something so exciting sound so dull." As the heiress squawked in protest, Yang just put her arm back around my shoulder. "Listen, my apprentice, this is all you need to know. Every two years, people come in with good food and cheap souvenirs. You eat a lot, watch performances and demos of sick new weaponry, some boring guys give speeches you never listen to, and at the end we get to duke it out in a wickedly cool arena. Sound fun?"

"Sounds fun," I agreed. "Why couldn't you explain it like that Weiss?"

"You forgot to mention it's not always in the same kingdom," complained Weiss. "And I'm sorry that I couldn't bring myself down far enough to talk on your level."

 _Number five._

"Me so sorry. Me can't think big words good."

Weiss narrowed her eyes at me first, though Yang was soon to earn her disapproval as well. Even Blake, normally so indifferent to the world, was caught with a smile on her face much as she tried to hide it.

"Ohh, I get the joke. It's because you're stupid."

"That's funny, Yang. I'm glad you got it."

"Is it because I gave you brain damage to go with that humiliation yesterday?"

"Funny, I seem to remember that having to look at your ugly mug was the most painful. I wish you'd have just committed and knocked me out."

Yang stuck out her tongue. "Bite me."

Weiss stalked over and interposed herself between the two of us. "Knock if off you two. Honestly, it's like dealing with children. Now, Yang, you know the city. Where are the docks?"

"The docks?" Yang asked, puzzled. "Why are we going to the docks? There's nothing down there."

"Of course there is! There are supposed to be ships bringing in the transfer students today."

"And…"

"And as members of Beacon Academy, it is our duty to welcome them!"

"She wants to check out the competition for the tournament." For the great crime of revealing her motivations, Weiss glared at Blake - not that it did any good. The look slid over the girl like water parting before a ship's bow.

Yang shook her head in disappointment. "You realize we have, like, months to do that… right?"

"I am well aware, Xiao-Long. But since there was nothing for us to do this afternoon I figured we might as well do something semi-productive. Besides, I'm not above enjoying the festival preparations."

Something in Weiss' tone or perhaps her words seemed to rub Yang the wrong way. The brawler crosser her arms and frowned, but didn't push the issue any farther. "Fine then. I'll lead the way, princess."

"Heiress."

Yang just waved a hand without looking back. "Whatever."

Was it bad that I started to regret my decision to come into Vale with them? As much as I wanted to spend time with my team, wonderful as they were, there was an undercurrent of tension that had bubbled to the surface. Yang spent her time talking to me and Blake, ignoring Weiss wherever possible. The heiress, for her part, seemed genuinely offended by the treatment and seemed determined to respond in kind.

I was just caught in the middle of all this like I had been hired to be an uncomfortable extra on a movie set. Anything that shifted the conversation surely would improve the mood, right? As the smell of salt and brine grew stronger something caught my eye.

"Hey, what happened there?"

The group turned to see where my finger was pointing. There, just a little ways up the street, a storefront was covered with crime tape where the window had clearly been smashed in. Two policemen were mulling around, looking inside the shark-like mouth. In some unspoken agreement we all wandered up to the police line to get a better view of what had happened.

"Yeah. Second dust shop to be hit this month. Damn place is turning into a jungle." The cop didn't seem to be unduly concerned at the sight, a trait that seemed to be shared by his partner.

"Just took inventory with the owner, and ahh, they left all the money again."

"They just took dust? How much?"

"Two hundred and thirty pounds, give or take. Refined and unrefined."

"Don't have to worry about this then." The first detective pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket and lit one, taking a deep drag. "Doesn't make a lick of sense. Why not take both? And who needs this much dust?"

"With how much has been stolen, an army."

"You think this could, ahh, be going to the White Fang?"

"Yeah, I think we don't get paid enough for this." Both men laughed at this as if the line had passed between them a hundred times and sauntered back inside the shop.

 _Another dust shop robbed,_ I thought to myself. _A dust shop._ Unconsciously I rubbed my leg where a dull ache had come on suddenly.

"The White Fang," scoffed Weiss. "What an awful bunch of degenerates."

"What's your problem?"

Weiss looked surprised, like she hadn't expected to be challenged on that. For that matter Yang and I were surprised by the energy in Blake's voice. It wasn't like her to get involved if she didn't have to.

"My problem? I simply don't care for the criminally insane."

"The White Fang is hardly a bunch of psychopaths." Blake crossed her arms and frowned. "They're a collection of misguided faunus."

"Misguided?" I butted in, hardly able to resist. "You know, not to long ago a group of White Fang faunus almost put me in the hospital down by these docks just because I was a human. That's pretty misguided."

"Thank you! They're a collection of _misguided_ faunus that want to wipe humanity off the face of the planet," Weiss added, throwing Blake's words back at her.

"So then they're very misguided."

"Misguided or not, the faunus that are a part of that organization are nothing but scum. Those faunus only know how steal, intimidate, and kill!"

Blake bristled at those words, stepping closer to the heiress. "That's a horrible thing to say! Those people were probably only pushed to that extreme because of the constant discrimination they face!"

"You know," I interjected. "I can sympathize with the faunus. But from what I've been reading Weiss isn't exactly wrong. I mean, they've kidnapped and executed political adversaries and people who disagree with them. They rob, steal, and destroy property of businesses that they think discriminate. Hell, they could have killed me for doing nothing but being in the wrong place at the wrong time without any other motivation than I was a human. That doesn't make them crusaders for a cause, that makes them terrorists."

"Of course you would say that," Blake shot back. "I knew there was a reason that you were assigned to team CRDL."

For the first time I was taken aback. These kind of emotion-packed tough arguments I had never backed away from. The back and forth of debate and the clashing of ideas and ideals was intoxicating to me - probably why I ended up doing debate in the first place. Personal attacks are usually a sign of someone losing an argument and don't bother me. Blake's insinuation, though… that did bother me.

"I'm sorry, what's that supposed to mean Blake?" I spat frostily.

Before the raven-haired girl could formulate a response, a yell for help dragged everyone's attention away from the conversation at hand and back to the docks.

"Stop him!" The police were the first to react, running out of the shop and past our spat. The three girls followed shortly behind in true huntress fashion. There, we were greeted by the sight of a couple port authority figures trying to chase after a monkey faunus, who was clearly winning the race. "You no good stowaway!" One of the heftier officials yelled after the retreating figure, his face tomato red from the exertion of the short run.

The faunus just perched on the railing for a short second, tail waving to maintain balance as he mock saluted his pursuers. "Thanks for the ride guys!" he called out cheerily, before dashing off once more.

"There goes another shining example of the faunus," commented Weiss dryly. "Give him enough time and he'll probably join up with the rest of the degenerates in the White Fang."

"You little brat," growled Blake with one fist clenched. "You don't know a thing about him!"

"I know he clearly broke the law," Weiss pointed out.

"But all you could see was his tail, wasn't it? It wasn't that he broke the law it was just that he was a faunus, you judgmental little girl! Had that been a human stowing away I bet not a word would have passed your lips!" Blake tried to turn and stalk off, but Weiss was having none of it.

"Excuse me! That is no way to talk to me. I am your team leader!" When no response was forthcoming, the girl in white continue to press her luck. "Blake Belladonna, you answer me right now!"

"Why? Why do I need to answer to you Weiss? All you've ever done is boss all of us around! You've done nothing to earn your spot as leader and I'm sure that Yang would agree with me!"

Yang, to her credit, didn't rise to hate on Weiss. Instead of striking out as I'm sure she wanted to do the Blonde instead attempted to give both sides an olive branch. "That's… not necessarily true. A lot of crap is getting thrown around, so let's take a second to cool off. Kay?" Lilac eyes moved back and forth like they were playing a tennis match, hands outstretched to both teammates in the vain hope that they might listen.

"No, I will not cool off Xiao-Long! I want to know exactly what your problem is with me Belladonna! I would certainly appreciate an explanation, and I'm sure Glen would too."

Icy blue and amber yellow both turned their attentions to me now, and suddenly I felt a little bit more for Yang. Sure, I wanted to go after Blake for her not-so-subtle shot at me being a racist. But at the same time… the discourse had strayed far from the heated conversation I had entered. The discomfort only grew as I became more acutely aware of the crowd that the argument was drawing. Some hurried by awkwardly, while others hung around pretending like they weren't hanging on to every piece of drama.

"Listen, both of you," I said, trying to tread a neutral line. "I know you guys are both upset, and you have your reasons to be. But, and I'm just throwing this out there, maybe we should… take this somewhere else? Somewhere more private?"

Both combatants for the first time took note of all the people watching. Blake shrank away a little, clutching at her arms. Weiss stood up straight and regained her dignified posture. Neither of them said a word, but it was clear that though the fight was far from over neither one of them wanted to have the dirty laundry aired in public.

I think I'll leave the trip back to Beacon mostly up to your imagination, hmm? Surely that's not to hard to picture. Yang and I sat in an awkward silence, neither one of us even wanting to attempt small talk. With the palpable tension between the two I was pretty confident any topic that we brought up would just turn into a club for Weiss and Blake to beat each other to death.

By the time my feet made it back to solid ground at Beacon I was ready to abandon Yang to her fate. I'm sorry, but this was not what I signed up for. Having an engaging discussion was one thing but I was not ready to get cut to ribbons because I had thrown in two cents before I realized how intense it would get. Bidding the poor girl adieu, I went back towards my room.

 _Thank goodness that's over,_ I grimaced. _I really hope they can work that out. Never thought I'd say this, but right now it's probably going to be better to hang out with RDL. That's easier to understand._

Speaking of understanding, I tried to puzzle my way through why the two were arguing the way they were. Weiss seemed the most obvious of the two; I couldn't speak to whether she was genuinely racist or not, but it would make sense why she had those apprehensions. The Schnee family and the associated company had been one of the most heavily targeted by the White Fang. That would surely leave a sour taste in anyone's mouth at best.

Of course, that was just speculation. But at least it made _sense._

 _But why was Blake so adamantly defending them?_

That was one puzzle that I could puzzle about till my puzzler was sore. My mind first threw up a bunch of theories, trying to figure out what might explain it.

 _She knows faunus who are discriminated against - maybe some horror stories - and thinks that the White Fang is the solution. No, Blake seems to smart for that. I feel like she'd see that violence begets more violence and doesn't solve anything. But maybe she recognizes it and feels vengeful anyway?_

Maybe. Maybe not. It would work, but my gut seemed to be steering me away from that. It just didn't quite fit the pattern or the person, as little as I knew about her.

 _There's got to be some other emotional pull. Something connecting her. I mean, maybe she supported them when they were non-violent? That leads her to have a connection that gives her the rose-tinted lenses._

That seemed more likely, based on what I knew. It seemed to fit Blake better but there was still a piece missing. What emotional connection was there? She wasn't a faunus herself. I could only speculate as to if she knew someone that connected her to the White Fang, so all in all it was a moot point. Still, there was something familiar that was tickling the back of my mind. I just couldn't place my finger on it.

"Glen! There you are!" A red blur zipped up to me and almost overshot, tugging on my sleeve to slow herself down.

Even though my train of thought had been disrupted, I couldn't help smiling at the bundle of enthusiasm. "Hey there Ruby. How's your day been?"

"Oh man, it's crazy! I had to spend so much time trying to get it to shift properly but now I think I've got it! You've got to come try it out and make sure it's what you want!" Ruby was already trying to drag me back from where she had come from for all the good that it was doing. "Please? Please please pretty pleeeaase?"

"Of course! Come on, time's a wasting. Hup!" At my insistence Ruby took off. She laughed as I sprinted as hard as I could to try and catch her, only to fall back to a burst of speed every time I got close. Hurtling around at a breakneck pace we reached the armory shortly, where Ruby wasted no time in breaking out her creation.

The first thing I saw looked like a very minimalistic semi-auto shotgun. There was barely any forearm, with most of the front being either round barrel or hexagonal magazine tubing. In the back the stock leading up to the butt-plate was just an outline, with a metal mesh stretched across the space inside.

"Okay! You know how to use a shotgun right?"

"I would certainly hope so, considering I asked for it."

Ruby facepalmed. "Yeah, of course. That's awkward."

"Better safe than sorry," I reassured. "So… can I shoot it?"

"Yes!" Ruby dashed off and returned seconds later with a box of ammunition. "Twenty-five rounds of grade-a twelve gage ammunition!" Her face fell a second later. "Well, that's not exactly true. It's not grade-a ammo. Actually, it's pretty cheap. Like, the cheapest. They're mostly for shooting on the range after all…"

"Don't worry about it." I cut off Ruby's rambling before she got too worked up. "I got it."

Moving to one of the range stations I cracked open the box and pulled out a round. I slotted it into the receiver and hit the release to let the breech slam closed. Sure, I could have put more into the magazine, but I wanted to test it first before loading more live ammunition in - for obvious reasons.

I pulled the gun up to my shoulder, nestling it in tightly before pausing. "So, I hesitate to ask, but… this thing's not going to blow up in my face, right?"

"No, it won't… probably."

"That's reassuring."

"No, no, it's fine! It wasn't a complicated shift so it was easy to get all the parts to work together properly. I promise it will be just fine."

I brought the gun back up so my eye was level with the barrel. "Okay then."

The trigger pull was weighty but smooth, and the kick was not too bad. A red cartridge ejected out the side and the breech locked open ready for another round. "Nice," I breathed. "Real nice."

After that I burned through the box of twenty five pretty quick. I wish I had some clays to shoot, because those were just the most fun you could have with a gun. Long distance shooting was satisfying, sure, but snap-shooting clays that come flying by and watching them turn to powder- that's the real fun. The gun Ruby had manufactured was shooting well, with not a single fault to report.

"Awesome!" she cheered as I finished off the last of the ammo before holding out her hands reverently. "Can I… can I show you how it transforms?"

Before handing it over I double checked that the gun was completely empty. It was a force of habit, really. Considering that Ruby operated a CANNON while spinning like a goddamn Beyblade I wasn't too worried that she was going to mishandle a simple semi-auto.

To be fair though, she did spin like a top in order to shoot people and hit them with a giant scythe.

So… jury's out on the gun safety?

"Okay, so you just push down here and slide this thingy forward…"

I was prepared to make a sarcastic jab over the technical term of 'thingy'- especially as she was the one that made it - when my mouth fell open in awe. As soon as Ruby flipped it on, the whole weapon snapped into a different configuration in a matter of a second or two and suddenly it's strange appearance made more sense. The magazine folded up over into the barrel to produce one piece of hexagonal pipe. The stock shifted up to the receiver to be inline with the barrel and change shape slightly to reveal-

"Holy shit it's a lacrosse stick," I managed in disbelief, so surprised I hardly noticed the curse pass my lips. "Holy shit." After a stunned silence I jerked myself out of my head and back into reality. "Sorry Ruby, I didn't mean to swear. I just - you designed and built this yourself? In less than a week?"

The young girl fidgeted nervously. "Yeah. I did."

"I don't believe it." I accepted the weapon with reverence, cradling it gently in my hands like it might disappear at any moment. "Oh my god."

"I know it's not perfect. That's just the first draft really," Ruby hurriedly added. "There's a few things that could be improved. I mean, when you fold it into the stick mode from the gun mode, you can't have any ammo in the magazine, obviously. You can only save one in the receiver. Speaking of, I couldn't get the receiver to compact down as narrow as the barrel for now and so it sticks out and it's not exactly like that drawing that you made but it's the best I could do in that amount of time-"

"Ruby, it's incredible. It's… I'm running out of adjectives here. Not only is this thing incredible, but you're absolutely amazing for doing this. I can hardly believe it. I… wow."

Ruby flushed a little under my praise, murmuring under her breath. If I squinted real hard I thought she might have said something about 'normal knees' but I was too enamored with her creation to pay attention. Slowly I began to turn the stick back and forth in a cradle, building up speed until I whipped it forward and torqued by body around.

The imaginary ball ripped out of the netting and was gone in a flash as the force of my shot almost spun me around.

"Do you have a ball?" I asked, interrupting Ruby's muttering. "Anything about fist sized will do."

"Oh! I do."

Ruby tossed me a ball, which I caught easily in the head. I cradled it for a second to get a feel for it, before passing it to myself off the concrete wall. Muscle memory built up over thousands upon thousands of repetitions now let me down as the unfamiliar shape of the net caused it to hook downwards and spike into the ground just a few feet in front of me.

"Hey Ruby, do you have some string or something I can weave through the mesh to shape the pocket?" I asked as I flicked out the stick to snag the errant projectile.

"Yes," she giggled. "I guess it wasn't supposed to do that?"

I sighed, but that small failure couldn't bring down my mood. "No, no it wasn't."

Ruby came back with a flexible metallic string to match the flexible metallic mesh, and I sat around weaving the strings through and occasionally throwing the ball before going back to adjusting to achieve the shape I wanted.

"So, what is that stick used for?" asked Ruby interestedly as I continued to adjust the mesh to my liking.

"Lacrosse stick. And it's for playing the sport of lacrosse," I replied absentmindedly as my hands continued to make fine adjustments. "I played it for years and years. Got pretty good at it too."

"I've never heard of lacrosse." Her face scrunched up innocently as she tried to search her mind for the sport.

"Eh, that's fine. Not a lot of people down here do. I picked it up when I was living up north for a while."

"North? Like, Atlas?"

"No, Canada. I lived there five years."

There was another long pause before I got a response. "Where's Canada?"

"I-" My blood ran cold for a second, and I fumbled to recover the stick as I almost dropped it. I had been so caught up in the excitement of the familiar tool being in my hands I had reverted to talking like I was still on Earth. "Don't worry about it. It's just a place I used to live."

To cover my panic, I finished the knot I was tying and tossed the ball against the wall a couple times in rapid succession. To my surprise and delight, it was finally throwing like I wanted it to. Buoyed by that small achievement I trotted over to the range and ripped the ball as hard as I could at the back wall some fifty yards away. The white missile streaked across the intervening distance and ricocheted back so quickly I nearly missed it out of surprise.

 _That was stupid fast. Holy crap. Of course! With my aura, and the strength training, of course I can throw harder and faster than before! Oh man, I've got to measure this!_

"Ruby! There has to be a… a chronometer, right? That's what it's called, yeah?"

"I think you mean chronograph?"

I waved a hand dismissively. "Same difference."

"Not really…"

"But do we have one?" I prodded.

"On it!"

Galvanized into action, Ruby dashed off in a flurry of rose petals to rummage around in the closet of seemingly endless equipment. After a few crashes, bangs, and muffled squeals the girl returned with the device I requested. She hurriedly set it up, then looked at me, then back at the device.

"Hey Glen, be careful okay? The space is not much wider than the ball…"

"Don't worry." I shot Ruby what I imagined to be a cocky grin. "I've got this."

The last time I recorded the speed of my shot, it was humming in around eighty six miles an hour when I was fourteen. Given three more years of practice, growth, and now aura, I'm sure I could push for over a hundred miles an hour easy. Stepping back, I let loose with a blistering shot that was perfectly on target… for the most part.

See, the ball went down the middle - not off left or right. But throwing at something that was below about shoulder height means the ball has to travel downwards.

I think you can see where this is going. The ball squeaked through the center of the second gate, but right behind that it snapped the first gate in half at the top. "Oh crap," I whispered, trying not to titter nervously. "Go go go!"

I bumped into Ruby as we both dashed around madly. She grabbed the chronograph and dumped it back into storage, and I grabbed the madly bouncing ball and we dashed out of the armory like we had just robbed the joint. Somehow, I expected Ms. Goodwitch to teleport to our location and drag us to detention by our earlobes. I'm sure Ruby had similar thoughts. It wasn't until we were a few corridors away that we calmed down enough to share in some nervous laughter.

"That's terrible," Ruby said, trying not to giggle. "We need to tell someone."

I nodded. "It's pretty bad. But I'm not going to be the one to tell Ms. Goodwitch."

"Because you broke it!"

"And snitches get stitches!" Ruby shrieked as I tickled her sides, dashing off a couple feet with her cheeks dusted pink.

"Glen!" At that moment the ringing of a scroll cut in, stopping everything dead in its tracks. "Oh! Sorry, I think that's mine. I - woah - yes - no - got it!" Ruby juggled her scroll before finally accepting the call and putting it to her ear. "Hello?"

There was a tense pause, where the corners of her mouth slowly dropped with every word spoken. "She what!... Why?... Oh… She'll be back, right?... Okay, I'll be there in a second." Ruby's scroll snapped shut. "Sorry Glen, I have to go!"

"Why's that?" I asked, wondering what could have happened.

"It's Blake," she gasped. "She's run away!"

* * *

 **A/N: Aaaaand first look at the fights! Glen goes 1 and 1, gets a weapon, and angers a cat. Honestly though, I didn't like doing that little spat between teammates. I felt like too much of it was recycled and not fresh enough.**

 **Plus my laptop is broke as hell, especially the 'd' key. And it has contracted popup ad aids. Hell on earth, I tell you.**

 **Anyway, hope you enjoy and I'll catch you on the flip side!**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Blake's monologue is tl;dr just pretty much a copy paste. It's not a ton, but you can skim it. You won't miss any alterations I've made.**

 **Why? Because I'm lazy, that's why. Also because it still works really well as a 'quick' backstory explanation.**

 **Anyway. Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Blake sat across from me, focusing on her cup of tea like it meant everything to her. It was cradled so gently in her hands that a baby would be jealous. It was also getting so much attention that… well, anyone would be jealous. That metaphor broke down, didn't it? What I'm getting at is that a cup of hot leaf water was getting more attention than I was.

And why did I want attention?

Because Blake was smoking hot.

Ha! I got somebody leaning with that one. No, that's not it. Let me break it down for you.

You find a girl wandering around the docks. It's a relief, because her teammates rounded you up to help in the search. You say "Hey! Glad I found you."

Girl runs off startled.

You give chase, assuring girl you only want to talk.

Girl does not listen.

Chase leads you to rooftops. No problem, you've done free-running before. Bad news, you are out of practice and you are a lot stronger than the last time you did. Now you've misjudged a jump, skid over the landing point, and eat it off of roof fifteen feet down into alley. The wind is knocked out of you. That hurts.

Out of pity the girl comes to see if you are okay. Once it's verified you are no longer dying, she is about to leave again.

To keep her from leaving you say something clever. "Want to grab a drink?" Damn it. Clarify. "I'm a bit parched after the chase you led me on." It's a brilliant recovery, but the girl is unconvinced. "What harm could it do? It's pretty clear you could get away if you really wanted to."

Your crystal clear powers of persuasion save the day. She begrudgingly agrees to visit the nearest coffee or tea shop with you as long as you don't contact her teammates. Seems fair enough. This is an opportunity to not just convince her to return to her teammates but to get to understand what makes her tick - something that's been bugging you.

So you shell out ten lien for some drinks - ice tea for you, hot tea for her - and admit that it's good enough for them to charge five dollars a cup. And then you wait. And wait. And wait. For goodness sake, I know she didn't promise to explain everything. But would even a little small talk kill her?

If you just replace every 'you' with 'me', you will find that this story isn't metaphorical. This is literally how I ended up on the relatively secluded upper deck of a tea shop with Blake who would not say a word no matter how hard I tried. And I was really trying, damnit.

"How's the tea?" Stony silence. "I have to say, this raspberry iced tea is really amazing. Usually peach is my favorite, but this really takes the cake."

"So, I heard them say that you might have been part of the White Fang at one point. You're a faunus then?"

"Hmm."

Silently I cheered. It may have been a monosyllabic grunt, but progress was progress. Perhaps this was the route to go down if I wanted to get her to talk?

"Was that what happened?"

Zero.

"You know, I may have a negative opinion of the White Fang but that doesn't mean I hate them or anyone involved with them. Or any faunus, for that matter."

Zilch.

"What got you to join up in the first place?"

Nada.

"Okay, then what got you to leave?"

I'm running out of ways to say zero. Did I say zippo? It was possible that Blake had been replaced with the mute version of herself from my world, because not only had she not spoken she hadn't even taken a sip of her tea yet. Were it not for that one grunt and the constant stink eye I was getting I might have found the nerve to check for a pulse.

"You know, if you wanted cold tea I think they sell some. It's better than leaving it to cool in the air." That one earned me a glare, but Blake did indeed finally take a sip. It's a good thing I didn't hold my breath in the hope that finally she might reciprocate with actual words.

For those of you still not tracking, she didn't.

With an exaggerated sigh I wiggled my lacrosse stick that had leaned up against the railing up until that moment. I had felt a little conspicuous walking around Vale with it, but since I didn't have a locker of my own yet there was no way in hell I was going to leave it with the assholes I shared a room with. I'd trust them to find a way to screw up what Ruby had worked so hard on.

"See this? It's a lacrosse stick. It's a sport that I used to play where you catch and throw a ball like this between you and your teammates." This sudden divergence in conversation got Blake to narrow her eyes in suspicion. "See, to practice throwing and catching, my coach had us play wall ball on our own. It's basically where you find a brick wall to throw the ball at over and over to build up your basic skills." With this I tossed the ball at Blake, who easily caught it in one hand without spilling any of the tea.

It was a stupid joke, but I knew that she had gotten it based on how she looked stone cold set on murder. "Shut up."

"She speaks," I gasped in awe. "Methought the maiden had been cursed to be dumb by a witch. But lo-"

"You're trying to hard." Blake threw the ball back with just a little heat on it.

"Yeah, I know," I grinned. "It's really hard to carry on a one sided conversation."

"I don't answer because I don't trust you, Glen."

Her barbed comment elicited a wince. "Okay, that stings. Fair enough though. We don't know each other that well." The ball was at least rolling now, something I hoped I might capitalize on. "But you should at least let your team know you're alright. Yang and Ruby have been scouring the city looking for you and they're worried sick."

"But not Weiss."

Again, Blake's ability to cut straight in with an uncomfortable comment put me on the defensive. "No… well, she… she's got her own stuff to deal with."

"You mean she didn't care enough to come look."

"I… listen, I know it reflects badly on her. But she's… okay, I'm not going to make excuses for Weiss. But that still leaves Yang and Ruby you know."

Blake put her cup down and crossed her arms. "But why did you come looking for me?"

I shrugged, considering the question earnestly. "Well… because Yang and Ruby asked me to, mostly."

"Not because you cared about me."

"Sure, I care about your well being like I would any average person, but you're hardly some damsel in distress. I trust you to take care of yourself. Besides, the odds of any of us actually finding you were pretty goddamn small. It's a miracle that you and I bumped into each other in the first place. The _reason_ I went out and searched anyway is because I really care about Yang and Ruby. They're good friends and I want to support them and help them out when they're so upset."

"Again, not because you care what happens to me," Blake repeated.

"Again, what I said above," I mimicked in frustration. "My points still stand. We barely know each other Blake. At least I'm being honest about what I'm thinking."

"Are you?" she sniped back.

"Oh, Jesus Christ Blake. Just come out and say it if you're going to say it. Don't try to weasel your way around with little passive aggressive comments. Come on. Put it out in the open, Blake."

Her eyes just narrowed even further, if that was possible, and she braced her elbows on the table to lean in closer. "Why are you with team CRDL?"

"Say the words…" I teased.

A stony silence followed. There was a part of me that worried I had gone to far and the girl would just walk away without another word. Equally, there was another part of me that was growing sick of the attitude and veiled accusations and wanted Blake to just say it so I could rub her face in how wrong she was.

"Do you dislike the faunus?"

"Am I a racist?" I clarified.

"Yes."

"Okay. If I'm a racist, prove it."

Blake sat back again, puzzled. "What?"

This time it was my turn to hesitate. "You do have innocent until proven guilty, yes?"

"We do…"

"Okay then. You made the accusation, the burden of proof is on you."

"What? How does that even-"

"Blake. I'm. Not. Stupid. I thought you were intelligent, but I lose hope the longer you go on like this. Make an argument and I'll defend myself. That's how due process works. Make. Your. Case."

At this Blake fell silent once again. It took a moment, as conflicting emotions flitted across her features. Finally, when I could take her silence no more, I picked up where I had left off.

"Fine. I'll do your job for you. 'But Glen, why are you leading team CRDL?' Oh, so we're doing guilt by association then? Fine. Let's do guilt by association. What would that make you, Blake? A kidnapper, a murderer, an arsonist, a thief, and I'm sure we could throw a lot more of the book at you by extension. I think that makes my point though, doesn't it?" Blake looked away from my frown, unable to meet my eyes. "Even if we don't play that game, all those guys are assholes. I'll happily admit that. They were bent on making my life hell while Cardin was their leader and though they've let up since he's been removed there's certainly no lost love there. And what about when I stopped Cardin from bullying Velvet in the middle of the cafeteria? You better be blind as well as dumb, and let the double entendre ring on the word dumb, because I distinctly remember you being there too. What did you do to help the faunus in need, hmm?"

Blake had crossed her arms in on herself and slumped back, just trying desperately to not fold under the weight of my words. I probably could have stopped there, but I was frustrated enough to keep going.

"Nothing? Okay. How about, 'Why do you not like the White Fang Glen?'. Oh my Jesus stop the presses. Someone who is opposed to terrorism opposes a group who is epitomizing terrorism. Clearly I can't support a faunus fight for equality if I don't like the White Fang, am I right guys?"

"They weren't always like that." All of the hidden disdain had disappeared from Blake's voice, leaving her tone much softer than it had been. I paused my rant to wait and listen to what she had to say.

"They weren't always like that," she repeated again. "I was with them since the group was very young. In fact, I guess you could say I was born into it. Back then, things were different. In the ashes of the Great War, the White Fang was meant to be a symbol of peace and unity between Humans and the Faunus. Of course, despite being promised equality, the Faunus were subjected to discrimination and hate. Humanity still thought of us as lesser beings. And so, the White Fang rose up as a voice of our people. And I was there.

"I was at the front of every rally. I took part in every boycott. I actually thought we were making a difference. But I was just a youthful optimist. Suddenly, our peaceful protests were being replaced by organized attacks. We were setting fire to shops that refused to serve us, hijacking cargo from companies that used Faunus labor. And the worst part of it was, it was working. We were being treated like equals. But not out of respect… out of fear.

"So, I left. I decided I no longer wanted to use my skills to aid in their violence, and instead, I would devote my life to becoming a huntress. So you're right. I am a criminal hiding in plain view." At this Blake's black bow, which I had never questioned before, twitched back and forth as her ears moved under the fabric.

"Blake." I began much more softly, my frustration having evaporated. "I'm sorry you've had to go through all that. I really am. I can understand why you'd be willing to defend the Fang even now. And I'm sorry I was so harsh with you. I didn't mean to come here and start a fight. I just wanted to maybe convince you to go back and check in with Yang and Ruby at least. They're really concerned about you."

Once again Blake fell silent, and I cursed myself internally.

 _I shouldn't have jumped down her throat like that. She's been scared off now. Here was my opportunity to help her reconcile with her teammates and instead I pestered her and ripped into her because I was frustrated. I should have worked harder to understand her side before doing that…_

The image of Cardin popped into my head and I had to bite my lip until it passed.

"Well, just think about it, okay? Sorry to have caused you so much trouble. Enjoy your tea." Standing slowly, I collected my stick and walked downstairs and out into the streets. As I trudged about a block away, I came across a small park and collapsed into a bench.

 _What the hell are you doing?_ I screamed at myself internally, though on the outside all that happened was I just sank my head into my hands. _What the hell are you going to tell Yang? Or Ruby? 'Oh, I found your teammate but she was cold as Weiss so I got sassy and she wouldn't come back?' That'll go over like a ton of bricks. Maybe I should call them, tell them I saw here around here , and have Yang headhunt the faunus._

I couldn't bring myself to do anything, however.

 _Why did I have to get so upset and just jump on her like that? You're a big boy, Glen. You can take someone insinuating you're a racist._

Flashes of Cardin dance through my head, bringing with it some not insubstantial guilt. The best I could do was focus on the conversation Velvet and I had on the roof. Of her fierce defense of me. I would say the guilt passed, but it was more like I was able to shove it back into it's bottle somewhere deep inside.

"Hey, I… wanted to apologize, but it looks like you're not having a great time yourself."

It only took me craning my head sideways to see Blake standing next to me a more than a little uncomfortable. Quickly I perked up, shaking my head like a dog to dispel my mood. "I was just lost in thought. You didn't do anything. Don't worry about it."

Blake shifted awkwardly side to side before sitting down next to me. "I feel like I should say sorry though. I was upset, and defensive, and I misjudged you."

I smiled gently. "Hey, no harm done. I forgive you. I'm guilty of much the same anyway." A nice, peaceful moment of silence passed between us as the sun beat down to warm my hair and shoulders. "I don't suppose it's too much to ask that you contact your teammates?"

"I can't right now, Glen."

"Can't or won't?"

Blake sighed. "Yes, I know I _can._ But I can't go back to face Weiss without some sort of proof that the White Fang isn't behind all these dust robberies. That's just not like them."

"Right," I said, tempering my immediate sarcastic response to something much milder. "The group responsible for the murdering and stealing of trains wouldn't knock over a dust store."

"Well…" Blake waved her hands in the air, searching for the right words. "I can't explain it. It's just a hunch; they've never needed this much dust before. That's why I was by the docks this morning. There's a huge shipment of SDC dust coming in this evening and I thought I'd stake it out to see what happens."

"Dust and SDC. It does fit the pattern," I muttered. "It's a real longshot though. What are the odds they try to take that much so shortly after the last robbery?"

"I know it's a longshot but I have to take it so I can stand to be around Weiss when I go back. I can't leave this opportunity," Blake argued back.

"Fine," I shrugged. "Might as well. Out of curiosity though, why are you telling me?"

"Because I need an independent witness." Blake watched in curiosity as one of my eyebrows climbed up my forehead until it was in danger of coming off.

"So, let me get this straight. You want me to break into the shipyards with you tonight and watch for a bunch of criminals and then do a tell all expose?"

"Yes."

I shook my head. "Nooo. You have your handy dandy independent scroll. Take some independent photos."

"But images can be doctored. I don't want Weiss to have any excuse. She already thinks you're on her side."

"I'm on my own side!"

"Please? You could help back me up if anything went wrong."

"Really," I said disbelievingly. "You want me backing you up. Me. The one who Yang bodied so fast it could have been a hundred-meter sprint."

"Anything is better than nothing." Blake smiled a smile that I didn't like the look of. "And if you come with me, I promise to go back to team SYBR."

Now it was my turn to squint at the faunus and search for the loophole. "Even if we uncover nothing?"

"Even if we uncover nothing."

A groan escaped my lips and I slumped back, eyes closed and face to the sky. Why was it always me? Somehow the responsibility of making sure this idiot got back to her other idiots hinged on me trespassing and watching out for a group of armed terrorists. Really? But if sitting on a roof illegally was all it took… besides, what were the odds of the Fang actually coming to steal this shipment?

"Yeah. Yeah, fine."

"Thank you Glen," Blake smiled, more genuinely then the last time.

"Oh shut up," I grumbled. "You're an idiot, and I must be an even bigger idiot to go along with this. Just tell me what you had in mind."

If I didn't immediately regret my decision right then I sure did a couple of hours later when I was laying on top of a crate full of dust next to Blake. I was not happy, and if I wasn't happy then Blake certainly wasn't going to be happy.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," I moaned. "This is such a bad idea. How about we just leave now?"

Blake did her best to ignore me, watching intently over the well lit docks where workers still bustled back and forth.

"I mean, look at them. There's fifty guys down there in various machines. The lights are brighter than the goddamn sun. I'm sure security is on speed-dial if not wandering around down there already. What are a bunch of hooligans in masks going to do?"

"Stop whining," Blake hissed.

"You're not the boss of me, mom," I muttered under my breath.

Her head turned towards me, and her eyes glowed a faint amber. "What did you say?"

"Nothing, mom."

"Shut up," she commanded. "If you don't want to be here, just leave."

"That's cold, Blake. Speaking of cold, the temperature keeps dropping and this metal crate is freezing cold. By extension, I am now getting cold."

"Suck it up."

"Easy for you to say," I continued. "Well, maybe not. Jeez, even Yang is threatened by how much skin you're showing."

Blake twitched, but tried to ignore me. It was an admirable move, but I already knew I was bugging her. A late attempt to lock me out wasn't going to work now. I already had a foot in the door.

"Also, were you planning on doing this all night?"

"Yes," the faunus replied tersely.

"Can we not? I have class tomorrow, you know. As do you by the way. And my scroll's been buzzing off the hook with people asking where I'm at. Also I'm cold. Did I mention that?"

"Shut. Up." What little I could see of Blake's expression was giving me every sign that she might just forget why she brought me along in the first place and murder me.

Deciding she'd had enough, I rolled over and tucked my arms inside my t-shirt. "Wake me up if anything happens. If I miss it, I'll say I saw it. Deal? Deal."

Curled up, once a little warmth built back up I was out cold. For some of you this might seem like an impossibility. For me, it was no problem. I don't know if there's some gene that allows someone to sleep anywhere at anytime regardless of the conditions but if there is I have it. That and I've probably slept rougher while on a backpacking trip in the mountains somewhere.

Barely, it seemed, had I closed my eyes before Blake was jabbing a toe into my thigh. "Wake up! Wake up!"

Before I even opened my eyes, by ears were assaulted by a roar that blotted out anything else Blake might have had to say. I snapped awake as the back-blast from a bullhead washed over me. Two of the large ships hovered just over the dock, while the third made it down to ground and began to unload people out of a side door. Every individual had on a mask and a uniform that had the same stylized wolf's head printed on the back - the same as the tattoo I had seen so long ago.

"It's… it's really them." The disappointment she felt was clear in her voice. "The White Fang."

"So, it's them. Can we go now?" I stood and stretched, working out the kinks from sleeping in such a weird position.

"Yeah… yeah, I suppose…" Blake began, rising to stand with me.

At that moment a figure in a white coat and black bowler exited the bullhead. "Hey, what's the holdup? We're not exactly the most inconspicuous bunch of thieves at the moment, so why don't you animals pick up the pace?"

"No… no this isn't right." Blake was barely audible over the whine of the engines as she drew her sword. "The White Fang would never work with a human. Especially not one like that."

I wanted to yell at the faunus to stop as she lept down from our vantage point. Maybe grab a hold of her arm and stop her from doing something stupid. But my mind and my body were locked up. Fear bubbled in my gut and my thigh was trying to tie myself into knots.

 _Now, because I can't have you all coming after me…_

 _A brief, terrifying moment of realization. Movement, as fast as I could. Not enough. Sound. Brutal impact that threw me to the floor. No pain. No pain. No pain. Hand to thigh. Can feel all the missing skin and muscle without having to look. Pain now. Blood flowing freely, too much._

 _Dying. Dying._

I didn't so much as snap back to reality as emerge slowly from a murky pool as Blake crept up on the thief. I took in a deep, shuddering breath and instinctively kneaded my thigh to loosen it up. The shock of seeing Roman Torchwick had brought back all the horror of that night in a faced paced flashback, leaving me to try and collect myself as the faunus girl went and put her blade to the criminal's neck.

 _Do something. Do something, goddamnit!_

But nothing happened. I couldn't move to help Blake, or drag her away.

And then, in a brilliant explosion, Torchwick staggered forwards and Blake was sent flying backwards. The criminal spun around and held up his cane like a gun, firing off dust rounds that seemed to shine like road flares before detonating on impact. The cat faunus dodge them all with a series of gymnastic like maneuvers before running back in my direction. She turned the corner and slid into the cover of a massive stack of cargo containers.

"You animals secure the dust. I'll deal with the problem," shouted Roman to his following. The thief sauntered towards Blake's hiding place, twirling his cane jauntily. "Here, kitty, kitty, kitty…"

 _Do something!_

I picked up the lacrosse stick and clutched at it with a white knuckle grip but still could only watch as Blake jumped out of the shadows to attack once again. She was a whirlwind of attacks, coming at Roman from all directions so quickly she seemed to leave an afterimage that would be struck down by the cane a split second after she had left. It seemed impossible that Torchwick would be able to keep up with this flurry of blows but he did, managing to land some strong blows that knocked her off balance.

To my horror, all I could do was watch as the criminal shot Blake once, twice, three times, sending her skittering away from him. The faunus girl staggered back to her feet, but it was clear she was much slower than before.

"Sorry, kitty. End of the line," grinned Roman.

 _MOVE!_

Without thinking I reared back and let loose with the shot of my life. The ball practically screamed across the intervening distance and smashed into Torchwick's temple, knocking the bowler off his head. It may have only weighed a third of a pound, but I can tell you when moving at any speed those things feel more like stone than rubber.

"What the hell?" The thief rubbed at his head, but quickly tracked down where I stood on top of the containers. "Can't you see you're interrupting a little moment here?"

Panicked as I was, I couldn't will my feet to move as the cane raised and a shot arced out towards my chest. There was a certain sense of surreality as the glowing red ball whistled towards me like one of those NERF toys.

Then the unconscious habits picked my hands up and flicked out the head of the stick. The back of the mesh rippled and bulged, and I moved my hands with the motion of the projectile to soften the impact. Like a catch and shoot drill I had done so many times in the past, as soon as the stick was cocked back it fell forwards once again to send the projectile screaming on its merry way back towards the thief.

Even from the distance I was at I could see the surprise on his face. He barely managed to dodge the explosion of his own projectile returned to him like a letter without sufficient postage.

 _Holy crap._ I took a second to marvel at what I had accomplished before dropping down much as Blake had earlier.

"Well, that was certainly surprising," the thief said flippantly, recovering his battered hat. "And look at this. It's got a massive dent in it." He pushed at the inside of the hat and worked to make it look like normal again. I lifted a stunned Blake back to her feet from where the explosion had sat her down as Roman set the apparel back on his head. "It's just not the same anymore."

"Blake, let's go," I hissed as her, trying to drag her towards the cover of one of the shipping containers.

"No." I lost my grip on her arm as she shook me off and headed back towards Torchwick. "He's mine!"

"God damn it to hell!"

As Blake began her attacks in earnest once more as I hefted my lacrosse stick and went to help, but given the speed of their strikes I felt I would just get in Blakes way. Instead I hovered around the outside and waited for an opportunity. Within a few more rounds of furious battle Blake was tripped up by Roman, and the criminal reared back for a two handed stroke almost like he was swinging with a baseball bat.

 _Or a lacrosse stick._ Again, instincts snapped my hands forwards with speed and precision to cross my stick with his as it came down. There was a mighty clang as the metal shafts came together and I continued to bear down and knock his attack way off balance. The move was a familiar defensive one for me, where when someone would rear back for the shot you would reach out and meet their stick with your own.

Growling, Torchwick flicked out his cane and hooked my stick to try and tear it out of my hands. Instinctively I let go of one end but held onto the other, letting him pull one end towards him until I lunged back in to stab him in the gut with the blunt end.

At this both of us pulled back, giving Blake a chance to return to the fray with she did with a desperate energy. Her blades seemed to flick between one and two at her will, and with a speed and mobility that I could hardly hope to track. Torchwick had suffered many little blows at this point, being unable to stop all the attacks, but he managed to block enough to once again give him the opening.

With the heel of one hand he knocked Blake back again, and before I could step in again a particularly savage blow slammed into the girl's head, bouncing her off the wall of metal containers even as her aura shimmered and died.

When she didn't immediately rise, I stepped in once again to intercede. Quickly I began to find out that I was way out of my element. There may have been some parts of lacrosse that could have helped me out before, but as we got into the thick of things I found I couldn't hope to keep up with Torchwick. His cane seemed to be able to change its direction just enough to avoid my counters, his blows landing wherever they wanted.

If I wanted to win I couldn't try to fight his game.

Now swinging my stick like a bat, I hacked Roman's legs out from under him at the knee and tried to jump on him to start grappling before he could get back up. Instead, my aura barely held together as one of the dust rounds from his cane caught me in the chest and sent me spiraling back. Equilibrium shot, I could only tumble blindly until I slammed back into the rough concrete ground and skidded to a halt.

It was only the adrenaline surging through me that allowed my body to pop back up as fast as it did, just in time for me to deflect another shot off to the side with the backside of my stick. A third round arced in low, looking to detonate in front of me just out of reach of my stick. Roman was learning.

 _But if it detonates there… it'll also be right next to Blake. Who has no aura and is unconscious._

In the remaining second I spun and covered Blake's body with my own.

The round detonated behind me, throwing chunks of gravel into my back hard enough to feel like a dozen full-bore punches.

"You're alright, kid." Roman hung the cane off his arm and lit a cigar, not even bothering to keep his eyes on me as he blew a smoke ring. "But you're nowhere near as good as her." He stabbed the glowing end of his smoke towards the unconscious body of Blake. "And now, you two kids are injured and I'm still pretty fresh."

My breath came out in ragged gasps, and there was a certain wetness to them that made me fear that something was terribly wrong.

"So how about we come to a solution that works out for everyone, since it's about time for me to go? You leave me and my men to clean up here, and in return I don't have to kill you. What do you say?"

"You're not… going to kill us?" I rasped in disbelief.

"Not if I don't have to," the thief frowned. "That's just wasteful. Plus the boys in blue tend to have a hard-on for me after things like that happen… and I want to avoid that kind of attention."

"Okay," I wheezed. "You have a deal."

"Great!" Roman took his hat off and gave an exaggerated bow. "I'll leave you to tending to the lady. Don't make me regret it! I won't be so merciful a second time. Go play hero somewhere else, kiddies."

As he stalked off, I managed to make my way over to Blake. There were already raccoon eyes forming and she was still unconscious. Not great signs as far as head trauma goes, if I'm being honest. It was with great pain that I was forced to leave my lacrosse stick behind in order to pick up the limp girl in a fireman's carry. Let me just tell you - people who are completely limp are so much harder to lift than you would think.

Walking out of the docks now became the biggest challenge. I had never pegged Blake as particularly heavy, but after the beating I took it was all that I could to to keep one foot in front of the other.

 _Step. Breath in. Step. Breath out._

I focused on walking and breathing rhythmically to alleviate the aching, radiating pain in my back from where the explosion had hit.

 _Come on. You can do it. You can do it. There's the fence._ I couldn't help but let out a low groan as I stumbled. _Damn it. Can't get us over. Gonna have to follow it along to the main building or until I find someone._

I stumbled along for a couple minutes longer with a growing shortness of breath until I just had to take a rest. Unsteadily I made my way down into something like a lunge, gingerly depositing Blake so she was sitting upright against the fence.

 _Okay. Just gonna take a breather. Just for a minute… oh shit._

On Blake's white undershirt there was a large stain of crimson red that bled down into the black of the coat-tailed vest below. With trembling hands, I gingerly pressed two fingers into Blake's wrist. After a second of searching, I found a strong pulse.

 _Good. She hasn't bled to death, but that is a good amount of red. I need to find the wound. When the hell did she get hit?_

When didn't really matter at this point, though. Fighting the pain that was swarming over my back I gently laid the girl down from where I had propped her up. Undoing the buttons of her vest, I gingerly slid the undershirt up to her neck. My eyes scanned her torso, not finding what they were looking for.

For anyone out there who may bother to ask, no, it wasn't uncomfortable. Yes, the only thing keeping Blake from being half-naked was her bra, but to be frank at that moment I couldn't give less of a damn how attractive she was. My only concern was the potential life threatening wound somewhere on her upper torso which I _could not find._

 _Where the hell is it, where the hell is it?_ My mind danced with that question as I could not find any wound. Sure, there was some blood that stained her pale chest and stomach but it looked like it had transferred from the shirt. That and the lack of any visible injury made it clear to me that the blood wasn't her.

As I pulled her shirt back down to cover her up, my mind finally bridged a gap that it probably should have long ago. The blood had been soaked up by her shirt because it was resting on my back. My back that had a writhing bed of stabbing pain since the explosion. My back that was in pain with every breath I took. An involuntary cough took hold of me, and I fought to contain it as best I could as every violent outburst was an agony.

 _God, it sounds like there are Rice_ _Krispies in my back._

As the fit passed, I spat some blood out of my mouth to join the droplets that had already fallen.

"Oh," I said aloud in surprise. "Oh." My brain worked to give me a diagnosis, which was less helpful that finding a solution.

 _Shortness of breath, pain while breathing, coughing up blood. Sounds like Rice Krispies buried deep inside. Probably a pulmonary contusion, caused by the impact of the shrapnel. Some is probably still in my back, hence the external bleeding._ I wish I had a way to evaluate the severity of the wounds, or that I had the flexibility to apply pressure to the wounds on my back. _Bleeding out probably isn't too much of a concern. There's not too much blood on Blake's shirt considering the amount of time she was pressed into my shoulders. Besides, any shrapnel buried back there will be lodged in my flesh and act as a plug. The pulmonary contusion is more of a problem._

Unfortunately, I didn't think that there was anything I could do except wait for permanent damage or death. What I needed was a doctor.

 _Yes! Ambulance. Need to call an ambulance, and the police._

Clumsily I fumbled my scroll out and snapped it open. Gingerly I dialed 9 - 1 - 1 and waited for a response. A computerized voice came back: _**The number you have dialed does not exist. Please check the number and try again.**_

 _No, no what the hell?_

Dialing again only produced the same upbeat recording, and I nearly hurled the phone in frustration. Why wouldn't it work? I knew that I hadn't entered it incorrectly. Again, it took my mind too long to process what should have become immediately obvious.

 _Of course. That's the emergency number from my world. No, just my country even. I have no idea what the emergency number is for Vale. Shit._ My mind raced and I searched for a solution. _Someone else has to know it. Yes! That's it._

I pulled open my contacts and hit the first number that I found, praying that whoever I had called was still awake at midnight on a sunday. The scroll rang, and rang, and just when I feared it would ring through the other person picked up.

"Glen! Where've you been this last week?"

Velvet's sweet Australian voice nearly brought me to tears in that moment.

"Velvet," I rasped. "I need you to call an ambulance to the docks right now."

"Glen? What's going on?"

"I don't know where exactly in the docks, but I'm on the outer fence by the road somewhere. I have shrapnel wounds in my back and I believe a pulmonary contusion. Blake is here with me, unconscious but breathing. She took a serious blow to the head."

There was panic in her voice now. "Glen? Oh my Oum, Glen what happened? Are you going to be okay?"

"Velvet. Velvet get someone - like Coco - to call emergency services now. Okay?"

"Okay. Okay. Oh my Oum-" There was some muffled talking from the other end of the line, and after about thirty seconds Velvet's voice returned. "Coco's calling, Glen. Don't worry, everything's going to be okay. You're going to be fine."

"Glad to hear you say it. If both of us agree we can't be wrong, right?" I coughed again, flecks of blood splattering out onto my shirt. I deliberately held the scroll away from me so that the microphone didn't pick up the wet hacking or the groan that made its way through blood stained teeth.

"Glen? Glen what was that? Talk to me!"

"Don't worry, I'm here," I wheezed quietly, my head starting to spin. "Give me just one second here to get Blake in a better position."

Placing the phone down, I screamed through my teeth at the stabbing pains as I rolled Blake from her back onto her side, legs slightly curled up and one arm under her head in the recovery position. Again, this was another thing that I probably should have done earlier but it hadn't occurred to me until now. My brain was just operating slower and I couldn't figure out why and that on its own was lending itself to anxiety.

To be honest, the thought of putting Blake in a better position was spurred by the slow onset of light-headedness and burning nausea that was now accompanying the searing ache in my back. I knew the feeling, though only from times when I had to have blood drawn. Yeah, I was one of those people who would pass out at the sight of a needle. Point was, I knew what it felt like to be coming close to fainting.

And if I passed out I wouldn't want her throwing up because of the concussion and aspirating it. Drowning in vomit would hardly make anyone's preferred ways of dying.

 _Come to think about it, I might need to put myself in that position. Don't want to drown in blood and other fluid while I wait for an ambulance to arrive._

I lay down myself, mirroring the body of Blake as I did so. The pressure hurt worse but as I spat out more blood and my vision grew fuzzy I was glad I had made the decision. It occurred to me that I had never picked up the phone, and even now I could hear the tinny voice of Velvet calling out.

 _I should tell her I'm okay,_ I managed fuzzily. The arm that wasn't under my body flopped over and I tried to lay hand on it, only to miss several times before dragging it clumsily closer to my mouth with wooden fingers.

"-len! Glen, please answer me."

"I'm f-fine. Jussa little… lightheaded 'sall." I frowned as I slurred through the words.

"What's going on? Tell me what's happening."

I tapped the scroll to speaker - something I probably should have done first when the call was connected.

"I'm jus… we're layin' here. I… it's hard. Feelslike… I can't get enough oxygen. Jussalittle hard to breath."

"Glen? It's going to be okay, you hear me? I need you to stay awake so that you can tell me when you see the ambulance pass and I'll relay that to Coco. Coco's still on the line with the operator and that's the best way to find you."

"How long?" There was a seconds pause as the question was relayed.

"I don't know. It depends where you are. It could be five or ten minutes. Can you stay with me that long Glen?"

"I dunno," I gasped. With my muddied mind, I waded towards a solution. "Use the… phone. Speaker. Listenforthe… forthe siren. Yeah."

Coco was still saying something. No - not Coco. Velvet. It was Velvet I was talking to. But it was okay. I knew she was going to take care of me. My eyes fluttered shut. I was pretty sure I should try and stay conscious, but for the life of me I couldn't remember why. Blake was going to be okay. Velvet was going to take care of me.

Besides, I wouldn't have to try and struggle against the pain to suck in each breath if I was unconscious. It'd be so much easier if I just… if I just…

* * *

Velvet just couldn't get over how fragile Glen looked in the hospital bed. There was so much lost when he wasn't inhabiting his frame. There was no friendly wave, no cheeky grin, no tongue in cheek comments sprouting at every opportunity. In waking hours Glen tended to radiate a warmth that drew people to him - perhaps something to do with the friendly face he had. Instead his face was gaunt and slack as he continued to lay still surrounded by white sheets.

"If he going to be alright?" asked Coco from behind her. "What happened?"

The doctor, an older gentleman with balding silver hair, took on the question.. "Yes ma'am. There were seven chunks of concrete that we removed from his back, ranging in size from about a pea to maybe half an inch in diameter. He suffered a pulmonary contusion on the posterior of the right lung which we believe was caused by the largest piece of debris, causing some minor bleeding that was depriving him of air. It shouldn't be a problem now that we've put him on oxygen. We'll monitor him for a little while until we're sure he's improving and there are no complications."

"How long will he be recovering?" Coco followed up.

"Considering he has aura, he shouldn't be in hospital more than a couple days before he can be released. He'll be feeling it for longer than that though, I assure you."

"Thanks doc."

The doctor left, leaving Coco and Velvet alone in the room with Glen. The rabbit Faunus pulled up one of the padded plastic chairs and sat down, gently taking one of Glen's hands in both her own.

"Damn, he looks like shit." Coco pulled off her aviators to reveal the bags that hung under them. "Oum, what the fuck happened to him?"

"I don't know," Velvet replied softly. "Blake's awake but they're not asking anything serious of her yet. They want her a chance to rest because of the serious concussion she suffered."

"I'm sure they're having to barricade the room against the rest of SYBR."

Velvet nodded absentmindedly, one thumb rubbing over the back of his hand. Her gaze was fixed intently at his face, looking for any sign he might wake up.

"You know, he's going to be okay, right? The doctor said as much. You don't need to worry yourself to death Vel."

"Mm-hm."

Coco couldn't help but sigh as her teammate still refused to let go of the boy. There was a little pit of jealousy somewhere inside that Coco squashed back down before promptly yawning. "Hey, Yatsu and Fox are going to take notes for us so don't worry about class. I think I'm going to try and catch some Z's."

The fashionista slumped down in a more comfortable chair, shuffling around until her breathing slowed and she began to snore. Velvet couldn't help but resist the urge to take a picture of the image conscious girl. With her flyaway hairs and bags under her eyes, it was a miracle she had rushed out without some basic makeup. As time wore on though, Velvet hoped that Glen would wake up soon.

Inside Glen's mind, someone else had the exact opposite opinion. The longer he stayed out the better, as far as she was concerned.

It would give them more time to talk.

* * *

 **A/N: Oh boy, Glen. You really should learn not to tangle with Torchwick my guy. It never seems to end well for you. And just like some smart dude was pointing out in the comments, we've missed Penny and Sun - at least for the time being.**

 **Most importantly, no one was there to support Blake except for Glen - and he is not exactly the cream of the crop. Torchwick wins the fight handily, but most importantly no superpowered android cut down the bullheads. They just scored a whole lot of dust my guy. A whole lotta dust.**

 **Now, it's never explained what that dust is for in cannon. But don't worry, I have ideas. I have so many ideas. Things are going to change, my dudes.**

 **I can't wait for the festival, can you?**

 **And Salem finally strikes back. She wasn't happy their last talk got interrupted.**

 **Anyway, hope you enjoyed! Catch you on the flip side.**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Jeez, that'll teach me to be more specific. I appreciate the help offered by everyone informing me of the dust bombs. Serious, no sarcasm imbedded. You can rest assured that I have not forgotten. But if I may also say, there is a scene where Roman and Cinder are standing in a warehouse that is stacked to the rafters with shipping crates full of dust. Remember? And Roman goes, "Cinder, fuck me, I stole all his dust for you sempai."**

 **And Cinder basically replies, "Accurate, Roman. Fuck you, we are moving to phase two."**

" **What about my dust?"**

" **Fuck your dust."**

 **Now, I'm no dust expert, nor am I a terrorist associated with the White Fang (yet- my application is still pending). But I don't think you need a dust science degree to see that it would hardly take a warehouse full of dust to make the train bombs. I'll give you a handful of shipping containers on a stretch. What about the other hundred or so? Right, the WF back payments. But the WF deal was clearly brokered a while before this happened. Were the WF just operating on faith?**

 ***concerned WF boi***

" **Adam, remember that human that borderline threatened to napalm every one of us if we didn't bow to her wishes?"**

 ***Adam "edgier than Hottopic" Taurus replies***

" **Yeah, psycho bitch?"**

" **The fuckin same. Anyway, she give us any more dust? More than that suitcase worth anyway?"**

" **Nah fam it's coming later."**

" **You sure about that?"**

" **Yeah, we both want to kill humans. We were made for each other. She wouldn't go back on her word."**

" **Uh Huh. Did you forget the part where she threatened to fuckin HUMAN TORCH EVERY FUCKIN FAUNUS?"**

" **Was that backsass I just heard? REEEEEE!"**

 ***sword slash of the temper tantrum***

 **But, for sake of argument, let's say there were some back payments made. I refuse to believe Cinder needed to give the WF a metric fuck ton of dust to have free reign over. She must have had even a dozen, a half a dozen containers worth left. So what did she need them for? Investing in dust because the stock market is too risky? Expanding her portfolio? To screw with Roman?**

 **That's just theorizing. For all we know she now just owns a locked warehouse full of dust in Vale. Well, we also know the breech happening early changed her plans. Hmmm…. and now I think.**

 **Damn this is cathartic. A healthy dose of satire and sarcasm really frees the mind. Again though, if I've missed something let me know before I go too far off the rails and can't recover. Really. I don't think I've missed anything, but… hey.**

* * *

"Hello, Glen. It's been too long."

It took a second to place the voice, and in that time I had a horrible moment of disorientation. I had been by the docks, I knew that, and then my memory got hazy. The cool leather under my back didn't make any sense until I opened my eyes.

 _Oh. I'm back in that place._

The white walls, the random assortment of items that seemed to accumulate from the various places I'd visited on Remnant. And of course, my little mind apartment would not be complete without one of my mind buddies. Once again, the apparition summoned from my subconscious wasn't Glen 2.0 but rather what appeared to be my feminine side. Salem.

"Morning Salem," I yawned as I swiveled upright on the leather couch. "It's only been a week or so. How've you been?"

The woman was perched on the edge of the bed from Beacon, and I took a moment to get a better look at her than I had the first time. She was still beautiful to be sure, in a classic way that was only accentuated by the dress and hairstyle she wore. She also had a kind of ageless face. I would have pegged her at somewhere in her mid twenties, but I could have been horribly off. Really, if she had said she was anywhere between late teens to late thirties I would have believed her.

There was a careful consideration before she spoke. "I've been busy." Her voice was rich and smooth.

"Yeah? Well, that makes two of us. Geez, I never though in a million years the White Fang we're going to show up to steal that shipment."

If Salem had cat eats like Blake did I'm sure they would have perked straight up. "Oh really? Do tell."

"An acquaintance basically forced me to help her with some stupid stunt after running off from her team by threatening to not return to them," I explained simply.

"And why did that hold such sway?"

"Ahh, well, I'm friends with her teammates and it was really upsetting to them. I thought it was the easiest way to help them out. Anyway, the short of it is the White Fang showed up headed by Roman Torchwick, I ended up having to fight him, and he messed me up." I absentmindedly scratched my head. "I wonder if I came back here because I'm dying?"

"You think you're dying?"

"Well, maybe. I was pretty messed up. I have a vague impression of being conscious when they unloaded me from the ambulance into the hospital but it blurs out pretty quickly after that."

"It would be a real shame if you died," Salem sighed. "There was so much I hoped we could do together."

I shrugged. "Eh. Well, whatever happens happens."

The golden haired woman raised an eyebrow delicately. "Whatever happens happens? You would treat your life with such a cavalier attitude?"

"Well, if I got to the hospital I should be fine. Besides, no point in worrying over it now." I stood to my feet and looked around in hope that Jaune's guitar had been added to the mix. To my delight, I found it was. I skipped over to it happily and strummed a few chords. "You sing?"

"I most decidedly do not."

"Shame. I'm really feeling we could do a solid cover of The Islander." Salem cocked her head in confusion. "It's a song?" When there was still no response I strummed the chords and sang the chorus hoping to stir some recognition. "This is for long forgotten, light at the end of the world… anything? No?"

Salem folded her hands in her lap. "I do not know the song and even if I did, I do not sing."

"Shame. The other Glen was a lot more fun," I sighed. "How do you come out of my mind and not know my jams or sing? Song lyrics are something like ninety percent of the good old noggin." My fist rapped the side of my head to emphasize.

Salem stood and began to pace towards me in an almost imperious manner. "You think I'm… some creation of your mind?"

"Basically," I nodded.

"And I suppose there's nothing I can do to convince you?"

"Nope. It is interesting though."

 _Could she though?_ I pondered, mind wandering on a tangent. _Well, I suppose that's not entirely true. If she could tell me information that I didn't know and that could be verified when I wake up it would… Well, that would be spooky but I guess it still wouldn't convince me. I could always pass it off as something I picked up on unconsciously. But is that because it's true or because I've already so firmly entrenched her as a product of my mind that I would find a way to make an excuse for anything? What irrefutable proof could she provide then?_

I brought myself out of that train of thought to find Salem apparently pondering the same thing. She considered this for a moment more before a small smile adorned her features. "Very well. If I'm just a product of your imagination would you humor me if I were to ask you a few questions?"

"Shoot." I sat back down on the couch and began finger-picking one of the Fairy Tale themes.

"You certainly risked a lot to help your friends. You would give a lot for them, wouldn't you?"

"Yeah. I would."

"And your family?"

"Hah. Well, that's a moot point."

Sensing there was more to the story Salem crossed over to sit by me, one hand resting on my shoulder. "What happened, Glen?"

"Oh nothing really. They just got left behind when I fell into this world."

"Fell into - so you're _not_ from this world." Suddenly the woman stood and clapped her hands together, pacing up and down the inside of the room. "Of course! But aura," she stopped and turned. "How did you get your aura unlocked?"

It took me a second to answer, because Salem's behavior seemed a little erratic to me. "Coco and Velvet unlocked it after I was nearly killed by Roman."

"Two people. Interesting," Salem smiled. "Interesting. But let's not dwell on that. Tell me, what would you do to be able to see your family again?"

"Anything," I answered instantly. "I'd do anything."

"And who would you consider like family in this world?"

"Velvet and her mom, for sure. Coco. Maybe Yang and Ruby to an extent too."

The golden haired woman steepled her fingers together. "Coco and Velvet again. Of course." I could barely make out that sentence it was spoken so quickly and quietly, but before I could dwell on it further Salem flipped back to me. "And you would do anything to keep harm from coming to them?"

"Yeah, I'd do anything in my power to keep them safe."

Salem threw back her head and guffawed. "Oh Glen, you are straightforward!" Her words sparked the memory of Velvet saying almost exactly the same thing, but this… felt different. Her hands grasped either side of my face in a vice grip and forced me to look into her eyes. "I admire that about you Glen. You do whatever it takes to protect those people you hold dear. Whatever it takes."

"I - I will," I stammered.

A second later Salem released my and backed up a step. "Whatever it takes, Glen. And should you need it, I will help you. I know how it feels to lose someone you love." Before I could ask for any clarification or string my scrambled thoughts together Salem gave me a small wave. "It seems it must be me that leaves you this time. I am being called back to work. A job report, if you will. I'll see you soon Glen."

There wasn't any flair when she left. No Goku-esque instant transmission zap, or even something more artistic like her dissolving into smoke and blowing away in the wind. No, I just blinked and she was gone as if she had never been there. It's like a peekaboo game with a baby. Where's Salem? There's Salem! Where's Salem? Gone.

Did you know that peekaboo works with really young babies because they haven't developed an understanding of object permanence? There's your fun fact for the day.

But I digress.

 _What the hell is my mind conjuring up now? I mean, what was the point of that?_ While I had the time to process my short interaction with Salem, I resumed my guitar picking that had halted when the woman sat down beside me. _If dreams are a way of processing events then what events am I processing here?_

 _Okay. So, I must have seen Salem before somewhere, even in passing. Or is that true? That the brain can't create new faces? I think so. Anyway, she was created to process… process the loss of my family some more? Process the new family I'm forming? Maybe there's such a heavy emphasis on protection because I just protected Blake. That's a crazy incident anyone would have to take some time to come to terms with._

As the guitar hummed under my fingers, I thought about it a bit more and came up with some other possibilities, but whatever the reason was I at least agreed with the core message. I would do whatever it took to keep the people I loved safe. That was a promise.

Finally, just as my hand was beginning to cramp from playing chords for so long, I felt the dream world slipping away like sand through my fingers. My eyes felt weighted and they were forced to flutter closed.

 _Guess I'm not dead yet. Waking world, here we go._

* * *

Velvet bounced on the balls of her feet as she stood outside the door to Glen's apartment. He wasn't scary, she knew that. He'd always been understanding and quick to forgive. But there was another layer now that she didn't quite understand that made it just a little harder. In a burst of courage she rapped on the door, praying that he was out and she would be able to leave comfortably for now knowing she had tried.

There was no such luck for her today. Just as she was about to call it quits and head back down to the safety of her own room, the door rattled open.

"Hello? Oh, hey Velvet. Want to come in?" Glen leaned heavily on the doorframe, bags under his eyes and hair slightly askew. "I could use the help of a professional."

"Sure," Velvet nodded, even though that was the last thing she had planned on. All she wanted to do was apologize and then leave. Saying no to Glen though, especially in his state, was just something the rabbit couldn't bring herself to do.

"So, I missed finals because of my injuries so I'm doing makeup work right now," Glen explained as he made his way back to the couch and lowered himself gingerly. "I wrote a paper on how to isolate and engage multiple Grimm for Port. It was basically complete BS so he should enjoy it. History for Oobleck wasn't terrible, but he put a hell of a lot of questions on it. It was like a speed round for an hour and a half. Peach's basic first aid was a cinch. Pretty sure I aced that. Now the only one left is Goodwitch."

Velvet just nodded mutely as she stood awkwardly next to the couch. This was not at all how she had anticipated that it would play out and she still hadn't apologized! Glen seemed oblivious to her predicament and groaned as he leaned forward to grab the TV remote off the coffee table.

"Ow. Anyway, she's having me write an essay on how I would beat Yang in a sparring match. Then she generously provided me with the video from our last fight along with a few others to study and remind myself that I won't be beating her anytime soon." Glen hit the pause button and watched as Yang sent him flying across the ring. "You wanna watch and give me your opinion?

"Actually, I… wanted to apologize."

A genuine look of puzzlement spread across Glen's face. "What for?"

She flushed slightly as she replayed the moment in her mind.

Velvet had slowly stirred awake to something gently shifting under her cheek. Groggily she wondered when she had fallen asleep, and why she had a pillow that was moving. Opening her eyes brought her the image of Glen's arm, his chest, and eyes that twinkled to match the smile that was ghosting onto his face.

"Sorry to wake you," he whispered softly. "I would have let you rest some more except my hand was falling asleep."

The rabbit Faunus couldn't help the heat that spread up her neck as she flushed pink at the realization that she had fallen asleep on Glen's arm - still holding his hand to boot. The embarrassment only lasted a second as it sank in that he was awake.

"Glen!" Velvet jumped to her feet and did the best that she could to wrap him up in a hug. "I was so worried about you!"

"Thanks," Glen replied softly, just lifting one arm barely enough to pat her on the back. She stayed like that for a while, head resting on his chest until she was satisfied that he was in one piece.

"Hey Velvet?" Glen's voice rumbled in his chest, creating a buzz that felt nice against Velve's cheek.

"Hmm?"

"What'd they diagnose me with?"

Velvet pushed herself back off Glen enough to look him in the eyes. "I think they said you had a pulmonary contusion and they pulled seven pieces of concrete out of your back."

He just grinned and chuckled, which infuriated Velvet. "Doctor Gregory House with another accurate diagnosis. I knew it wasn't lupus."

"You idiot," she growled, sitting up and resisting the urge to smack him. "You can't joke your way out of this one! Do you know how terrifying it was to receive that phone call in the middle of the night?"

Surprise flitted across his face, and the grin sank like a ship that had struck a reef. "I'm sorry Velvet. I never meant to worry you, I swear."

"Well it's a little late for that!" Velvet knew she was being unfair as Glen sat there and just took it without complaint but couldn't keep the words from pouring out. "If it wasn't enough that I had to listen to you coughing and screaming it was worse when you went silent and it was all I could do to listen for the ambulance and hope you weren't dead on the other end of the line!"

"...I hoped you couldn't hear that."

"Oh, but I could."

"I'm sorry Velvet. I really am."

She wasn't done though. "And so we rush down here to try and find out what's going on only to find out you're in surgery! No one bothered to inform us that you were going to be okay until half an hour later and even then no one knows exactly how you got injured because you'd been in and out of consciousness since they picked you up! So I think you owe me an explanation!"

Glen looked away from Velvet to where his hands clenched the sheets. "Well… Blake ran off because of an argument within SYBR so Yang and Ruby hired me to help look for her."

"Okay."

"So, I found Blake but she wouldn't make up with SYBR unless I helped her stake out a shipment of dust by the docks."

"Of course," said Velvet with just a touch of sarcasm. "Why not?"

Glen winced a little. "And then the White Fang actually showed up to steal the dust."

"Mm-hm."

"And Blake wouldn't leave…"

"Yes?"

"And so I may have had to help her… fight Roman Torchwick."

"You what?" Velvet could hardly contain her outburst. "You fought- after what happened last time? The last time you nearly died?"

Glen looked absolutely miserable. "I know. But Blake needed help."

"And that's how you got shrapnel in your back?"

"Kind of. Blake was unconscious and out of aura and I shielded her from the blast."

"Without any aura yourself? You idiot," she growled. "What stopped you from calling someone before you even went on this harebrained adventure?"

"Hindsight is twenty twenty," Glen joked weakly. "I thought there was no chance that the White Fang showed. And then they did… and there wasn't much time to place a call."

"And what exactly, _doctor,_ would have happened if the ambulance hadn't found you?"

"Eventually?" Glen took a deep breath in and released it slowly. "Hypoxia, I guess. Oxygen deprivation. It's a good thing you thought to listen for the ambulance through the phone though. That's really smart."

Velvet couldn't take much more and stalked out with hands clenched in fists.

"What?" asked Glen as the rabbit faunus stormed off. "Velvet what did I say?"

She sighed in frustration. "I'll be back. I'm just going to join Coco downstairs for breakfast." And then she was gone.

Not permanently; eventually Coco and Velvet returned, only for their exasperation to increase upon finding out that the reason Glen had been missing all week was that he'd been assigned to team CRDL. Eventually Velvet and Coco had to leave to take their finals, leaving Glen to recover on his own. It was late on Friday Glen was finally released from the hospital to the Scarlatina household thanks to Beacon having closed up for winter break.

From there Glen had mostly sequestered himself away for a few days, Velvet letting the guilt gnaw away at her because she didn't understand exactly _why_ she had gotten so angry at Glen. He'd gotten hurt trying to help and protect someone else; it was admirable, even if there were a few stupid decisions. In the end both he and Blake had survived and would quickly heal. She had been worried, sure, but that tirade wasn't justified. Right after he'd come back to consciousness for the first time too!

She just had to apologize. Velvet couldn't stand the thought that he might think badly of her for it, no matter how small the possibility.

"Well… I shouldn't have been so upset with you in the hospital." Velvet's laced her fingers together in front of herself as bubble of nervous energy fought to keep each word in her throat. "I wasn't really angry at you. I just wanted you to know that."

"I know," Glen smiled easily, putting Velvet's fears to rest. "You were just worried about me. I understand that. Consider it forgotten." The easy smile morphed into something a bit more contemplative as he scratched at the beginnings of a beard. "Actually, it's an interesting kind of psychological deal. The emotion is actually fear, anxiety, or worry. But anger is a way to hide the vulnerability and so it's what is expressed. People are crazy, you know."

"How do you know all that?" Velvet marveled, able to relax now that it seemed behind them.

"Like, the psychology stuff?

"All of it. Like, medically you could diagnose yourself when you got hurt and you knew what first aid to perform. Or the psychology stuff. Or anything. How did you learn all that?"

Glen opened his mouth to reply and instead had to wait for a massive yawn to pass. "Interest, I guess. I had a lot of interests. The way people thought and reacted to situations was fascinating. So I researched and took some classes relating to sociology and psychology. Really cool stuff. Also, the way the body works and functions? It's an unbelievably intricate. Like, just the fact that I can lift my arm with any kind of speed is insane if you think of all the electrical and chemical signaling that has to go on in between. That really interested me too, so I did the same thing. Biology, Anatomy and Physiology, that kind of stuff. Even got to watch some surgeries and intern in a clinic."

"And you remember all of it?"

"I remember most of it. Enough of it." Glen slouched back and propped his feet up on the coffee table. "I figured understanding how the body gets broken and put back together would be a useful skill. Turns out I was right." He patted the couch next to him, inviting Velvet over. "C'mon. This essay isn't going to write itself."

After a seconds pause Velvet lowered down onto the couch. She couldn't help but let out a muffled squeak as Glen's weight caused her to slide across the slick leather until they were hip to hip. Her eyes darted to his face looking for some sign of disapproval, but he was to busy fiddling with the remote and didn't seem bothered by it.

"So," began Velvet, trying to distract from how close they were now. "It's still hard for me to get over that you're a member of team CRDL." Glen winced, and Velvet worried that she might have brought up too sensitive a topic. "Oh! I'm sorry."

"No, it's worse than that." Glen pinched the bridge of his nose as Velvet waited nervously. "You see, we're not… we're not team CRDL anymore."

"What… what do you mean?"

"Well, we got a new name."

The Faunus leaned in expectantly, and when nothing more came forth she scowled without any real heat and bumped her shoulder into him. "Don't do that! You made me worry something else bad had happened!"

Glen just turned to look at her with a long face. "You haven't heard the name yet."

"What is it?"

"It's," he cleared his throat. "G-R-B-L."

"Garble?"

A bark of laughter slipped through Glen's grim facade at that interpretation. "Oh god no. I thank you for that, because I suppose it could have been worse. No, it's pronounced… it's pronounced gerbil."

"Gerbil."

"Yep."

Velvet mimed holding a small animal in cupped hands. "Like the…"

"Yep."

"That's not so bad…" Glen's sullen expression had her stifling a giggle. That in turn got him to purse his lips which really set her off. "S-s-sorry." Her voice shook as she tried to reign in her laughter. "I know it has to be miserable to be on a team with them."

"Ahh, they're not so bad without Cardin. Besides, I'm surprised you don't see the opportunity here."

"The opportunity?"

"Yeah. If I can win enough of their respect then there's a chance I can pull off some of that long term rehabilitation you talked about. Remember?"

Velvet couldn't help the smile that spread onto her face, nor could she help the burst of affection she felt for the boy across from her. They were already close enough that it felt the most natural thing in the world to lean into his side as Glen's free arm looped over her shoulders and rested there comfortably. "You really mean it?"

"Course I do. I mean, it's gonna be challenging but it's worth a shot."

"I'm so proud of you," she smiled. "That's awesome Glen."

"That warms a man's heart. _But_ that is not why I brought you here."

It was a little disappointing for Velvet when Glen removed his arm and went back to fiddling with his remote, forcing her to sit back up.

"I brought myself here."

"I brought myself here," mimicked Glen in Velvet's accented tones.

"Shut up," she laughed lightly. "Not while I'm complimenting you!"

"And don't get me wrong, I do love it. But it is currently-" Glen pulled his scroll out dramatically and checked the time. "-a quarter to three and I need to send this essay to Goodwitch by six. An essay I haven't started and for which I have little inspiration except reiterating that I can't beat Yang five different ways."

"Oh."

"Oh indeed. So, it was fortuitous that you showed up." Glen grinned cheekily and put his hands together as if in prayer. "O beautiful queen, your humble peon asks that you would grace him with your knowledge. He is but a student, and you are his master. Dispense upon me your wisdom, your experience, your… etcetera, etcetera."

"Well, if you ask like that…" Velvet flushed a little, looking away at the TV screen. "Let's see it."

Glen took a second to rewind to the beginning and hit play, and when the fight started Velvet couldn't help but wince. She had thought he might have been acting humble about it but it seems he was only being accurate. Yang absolutely dominated the fight from start to finish, landing powerful combos that battered Glen around the arena while he didn't land so much as a single kick. When he stopped the track and looked expectantly to her, she found she didn't have much hope of him beating Yang either.

"That bad, huh?"

Velvet hurriedly rearranged her features to what she hoped was neutral. "It wasn't… great… but we can figure out something to write. Let's break it down into chunks."

Glen flipped open his scroll again and tapped open a writing app. "Okay. What should we break it up into?"

"Make a chart for offensive, defensive, and counter at long range and close range."

"Sweet." Glen did exactly that and sat back once it was complete. "Let's start with long range. That'll be the easiest to do."

A solitary eyebrow twitched upwards in surprise. "You think that'll be the easiest?"

"Yeah. With my weapon I don't think holding her off at distance would be a problem."

Yet again, Velvet found herself surprised at just how much could transpire in a weeks time. "You have a weapon! Can I see it?"

"You're not going to go full Ruby on me are you?" Glen asked skeptically.

"What? No, I'm just surprised. And… maybe I could take a picture of it?" she asked hopefully.

"That is a interesting request, but I would say yes… if I had it."

"Where is it then?"

Glen sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, which Velvet was beginning to notice was a little tic of his whenever he got frustrated. "Well, in order to try and carry Blake out of there I had to leave our weapons behind. When the police went through and investigated the crime scene, they found both of them. Well, Blake got hers back once they'd done whatever they do with it but not me. Apparently I have an 'unregistered weapon' which means that in order to get it back I need to both register it and pay a fifteen hundred lien fine."

"Oh. That sucks," sympathized Velvet. "But, umm, why the air quotes around unregistered weapon?"

"Oh, it's nothing," grumbled Glen. "A layover from my world where I didn't have to register my firearms with the government. I just think it's stupid."

"You think it's stupid?"

"Yes. But," he continued, holding up a finger. "I don't want to argue about it."

"Because you'll lose?" she needled playfully.

"No, because I'll _win,_ but it won't change anything. I've got to abide by the statutes and regulations of this world which means I am still fifteen hundred lien out of pocket and then I won't have time to write this essay. Then I'll have Goodwitch breathing down my neck the rest of next semester." He shuddered, imagining the horror that it would be to have earned the ire of the notoriously strict headmistress.

"Do you… well, have fifteen hundred lien?"

Glen groaned and slunk lower into the couch. " _Yes,_ but that doesn't mean I want to have to give it away."

"Where did you come up with that amount?"

"Oh, the Oz gave me five thousand for a weapon. Ruby spent about one and a quarter K on materials and parts and she racked up about five hundred lien worth of time in Beacon's forge. She would have done it for free but I insisted that she take two fifty. So that rounds out to about two K lien."

The rabbit nodded in appreciation. "I would have hoped you gave her something. Do you know how expensive it might have been otherwise? Probably four times as much as it cost for Ruby to do it. And taken twice as long to create."

"Figured. That kid's a weapon… I don't know, what would you call it?" Glen snapped his fingers as if it would jog his memory.

"Whizkid?" suggested Velvet.

"Yeah, prodigy. That's the word." Glen then turned and squinted at her. "I'm sorry, whizkid?"

"Yes? What's wrong with it?"

"What's wrong with it? It sounds like what I would call a toddler that was potty trained at a young age."

"It's not… that's not..." flushed Velvet, now wishing she could take back the word.

Glen sat up and grabbed the stammering Faunus by the shoulders. "Point is, my funds are cut in half and I _still haven't written this essay!_ Velvet, why did you let me get so far off track?"

"L-let you?"

"Yes! I have no idea what happened but it must have been your fault."

"My fault?"

"Yes! I am perfect and do not make mistakes!"

Velvet couldn't help but giggle again at the bombastic tone Glen had adopted. "Didn't you just get fined fifteen hundred lien for not registering your weapon?"

There was a thump as Glen dramatically deflated and slumped to the floor. "Why must you wound me so?" He lay there for a second before carefully climbing back into the spot he had just vacated. "Speaking of wounds, I am still too sore to be doing that," he groaned.

"Are you okay? Do you need something?"

"Oh, I'm just whining. Essay now, please." His fingers hovered over the scroll keys and hesitated. "What was I going to outline?"

"Long range? With your weapon?"

"Of course." Glen began tapping away furious bullet points. "So dust rounds don't actually move that fast," he muttered. "So with a little distance I can actually catch or deflect rounds. She only carries a limited about of ammo, so if she stays at distance and uses up all her shells that's my opportunity to close distance. We are fairly evenly matched when she's not jetting around on her shotgun-gauntlets."

He continued tapping away at the scroll, leaving Velvet to just listen to his audible muttering as he crafted the essay. She had to admit, it was interesting to listen to his mind leapfrog from place to place rapidly. Every couple minutes he'd look up and bounce ideas off of Velvet. All she would have to do was make a suggestion and he'd be off again at light speed. In the end it took less than two hours to churn out a six page paper.

"I think that about covers it," sighed Glen as he lounged back. "What do you think?"

"It looks good to me."

"Alright. I'm going to send it off then."

Horrified, Velvet swiped his scroll away from him. "You're just going to send it off? Without proofreading it?"

"Yes." Glen swiped for the scroll, only to have Velvet pull it out of reach. "No you don't! I swear - Velvet, I swear I will use lethal force if I have to."

They scrambled around for a few seconds, with Velvet easily fending him off until they stood on opposite sides of the couch. Glen gripped the armrest and narrowed his eyes.

"You're stealing from a cripple, you know."

" _You_ are hardly crippled. You just vaulted over three different pieces of furniture."

"Yeah, and I shouldn't have done that." Glen winced and leaned heavier on the couch. "Jesus, that hurts. I think I popped a few stitches."

In concern, Velvet rushed over to see what was wrong. No sooner was she in striking distance than Glen made a miraculous recovery. Both hands snakes out and jabbed into her in her sides eliciting a shriek. The scroll tumbled through the air, thrown on reflex, only for Glen to deftly pull it back to earth.

Seconds later it was all over.

"Sent," grinned the unrepentant criminal.

"That was a dirty trick." She crossed her arms and pursed her lips.

"I'm sorry?"

"You're nothing of the sort."

"I am at least a little," Glen laughed.

"I was only trying to help you by proofreading!"

He just waved dismissively. "Proofreading shmoofreading. I never do any of that."

"And why not?"

Glen just shook his head. "I told you Velvet. I am perfect and do not make mistakes."

"Really?"

"Really. I didn't usually proofread and my grades were top notch. E-Z."

"Ugh." Now it was Velvet's turn to slump down into the couch. "You're impossible."

The cushion flexed as he followed her down into the leather. "Oh come on. Don't be like that, huh? Velvet? Velvet? C'mon Velvet. Veeelvettt."

Each iteration of her name was punctuated by Glen bumping his shoulder into her. Finally, she was the first to break by shoving him away playfully while attempting to maintain a disapproving frown.

"Stop it, Glen."

"Oh? I know what'll turn that frown upside down."

Glen leaned in again and began to tickle Velvet again running his fingers up her sides and under her arms. Velvet shrieked and squirmed, trying to escape the relentless attack. After precious seconds spend flailing wildly, she caught his hands in her own. "S-s-stop it," she wheezed.

He chuckled and taped his pointer finger against the top of her nose. "There we go. I knew smiling Velvet was in there somewhere." Their laughter subsided, faces no more than a foot apart-

 _Thudthudthud._

Both teens turned their heads to the door as if somehow through sight alone they could answer the question of who was on the other side. In fact, they couldn't. An inch and a half of wood was a pretty effective block in that way.

"Glen! Are you in there?"

Velvet didn't think she'd ever seen Glen move faster as he catapulted to his feet and rushed over to the door. "Yes ma'am!" He pulled on the handle to reveal-

"Mom?" asked Velvet incredulously.

"Well, I see you two have finally made up. About time, too. I had enough of you moping around honey."

Velvet would have gone pink if her face hadn't already been flushed. "Mom! I wasn't moping!"

"Walking on eggshells, then. Either way you were avoiding Glen like he had the plague." She spun Glen around and fussed with his hair, trying to get it back into place. "Glen, honey, you don't have the plague do you?"

"No ma'am."

"Well then, you can help with dinner then. Come on! You too, Velvet."

"Yes ma'am!"

He motioned to Velvet to follow, which she did in almost a dreamlike state. She had no idea what on Remnant had happened that had caused her mother to take such a shine to Glen. As they clambered down the stairs she couldn't help but voice the question in a hushed whisper.

"Glen, what - I mean, with you and my mom - Why are you -what happened?"

"I dunno, we spent time together and we get along well?"

"Spent time together?" she hissed softly. "Like what?"

"Like, she drove me here from the hospital? And I've been helping her make dinner all week?"

"No…"

"Yeesss,"'Glen nodded.

"But I didn't notice-"

"That's because you were… moping in your room?"

"Shut up."

"Were you moping because of me?"

Velvet stuck a finger in Glen's chest as they got to the bottom of the stairs. "I wasn't moping!"

Ms. Scarlatina walked between the two, effortlessly snagging Glen's ear as she passed and dragging him through the lobby towards their living quarters. "They'll be enough time for flirting when dinner's been cooked, the both of you."

To Velvet's amazement Glen finally had the decency to look embarrassed about something. "Ms. Scarlatina, we're not- owww!"

"Mom!"

"Hush, you two." She released Glen, who rubbed his ear gingerly. "Glen, you can start on whatever it is that you were going to make. Velvet, you help him. I have some things to take care in the office right now. I'll join you later."

She whisked her way out of the kitchen, leaving an awkward silence in her wake. Neither teen wanted to talk about the whirlwind that had swept through, and instead stood there looking almost anywhere except at each other. After a couple seconds of shuffling, Glen finally broke the quiet with a cough.

"So, ahh, dinner?"

"Yes." Velvet nodded furiously. "Umm, what are we doing?"

Just getting back into the flow of a conversation seemed to re-energize Glen and jolt him out of the awkward funk. "Well, if I had my way we'd be doing a stir-fry with shrimp! Or at least chicken. Maybe both. But I'm settling for vegetables because neither of you eat meat. You don't even do eggs!"

"Of course not!"

"Why not?"

"Because… because they're like baby chickens!"

There was an audible smack as Glen slapped a hand to his face. "For the love of all that is holy, tell me you didn't say that the eggs we eat are chicken babies."

"Well… not exactly?"

"Okay, Velvet, how old are you?"

"Eighteen?"

"And you think the eggs you buy in the grocery store are baby chickens?"

"I don't… I've never really thought about it, okay? We've just eaten like this since I was little!" she said defensively.

Glen leaned on the island, propping himself up on his elbows. "Let me educate you on the food, my girl. First off, hens produce eggs without a rooster. That means they're not fertilized and will not make a chick. So, basically, they're chicken periods."

The thought was not exactly a comfort to the Faunus, who gagged at the thought. "That's still disgusting, Glen."

The omnivore looked upon Velvet's obvious discomfort with glee, and in his infinite wisdom decided that continuing to gross her out was the best way to go. "What about sausage then? It's just the ground up muscle and tendon of several animals stuffed inside an intestine. That's not even getting into the blood sausage, which is exactly what it sounds like."

Velvet's stomach rolled over and she couldn't help but gag more violently. She leaned on the counter for a moment until her stomach settled and she could trust herself to speak. Glen at least looked a little sorry, though whether that was because of the daggers she was glaring or the reaction he had garnered Velvet wasn't entirely sure.

"You okay there?" Glen sidled up next to her, trying to put a comforting hand on her back. For his troubles he got a well deserved stony stare. "Sorry… I maybe shouldn't a did that. Let's just go with the vegetable stir fry, yeah?"

"Fine."

"Right," he said gingerly. "Would you be amicable enough to peel and slice carrots? And asparagus?"

Velvet deigned not to talk, but brushed past Glen and went to select a knife. He took the hint and got a cutting implement of his own and began to work on a red onion, tearing off the husk-like exterior and starting to slice it into thin rings.

"Hey Velvet?" She glanced over at Glen to see his face scrunched up in a desperate attempt to stop tears from streaming down his face. "If it's any consolation it makes me really sad to carve up this vegetable."

She couldn't help but let a little chuckle. It was just impossible to stay upset with him, Velvet had decided. He we too much like a teddy bear. Or a puppy. All about fun and full of energy until he inevitably went too far, but even then it wasn't really intentional. "Is it that bad?"

"Oh, it's wonderful." Every time he blinked, another droplet slid halfway down his cheek. "I've actually always been stupidly sensitive to onions. There have been times my mom was cutting them in the kitchen and I was in the basement and my eyes started watering up. It doesn't even make sense. Generally you tear up because of the misting onion juice, I think? I don't even know."

"Did you take it just so you get some sympathy?"

Glen shrugged unrepentantly. "Yes? But, I mean, you're the rabbit. I figured you'd be the carrot expert."

"Jerk." She threw a carrot at him in retaliation, the orange projectile bouncing off his chest and landing on the floor.

Picking it up between two fingers Glen wagged a condescending finger at her. "Careful now. That's our dinner."

"I know." Velvet rolled her eyes and easily caught the vegetable that was tossed back to her.

"There we go. Now you're reminding me of your mother."

"Excuse me?"

"Dude, your mother is the queen of sass. She's blunter than a cricket bat and it's absolutely amazing. It's kind of made me wonder if you were adopted."

"Hey!"

"But," stressed Glen, "Then come moments like these where it is crystal clear that you are your mother's daughter."

Velvet scrunched up her nose in confusion. "Thank you?"

"Don't mention it," laughed Glen.

Soon the veggies were sliced, the sauce was mixed, and they set off on the adventure of cooking everything together in hot oil. It was a shorter process than Velvet had anticipated; oddly enough that somewhat disappointed her. Normally it was a chore to help her mother out but Glen managed to make it all enjoyable. He had a knack for cracking jokes at just the right time with the perfect expression to get a laugh, or needling in just the right way to get a rise out of her.

It made something mundane… downright fun.

Plus the food smelled amazing. Snow peas, carrots, onions, asparagus, and bell pepper fried up with ginger, syrup, and a salty brown sauce that Glen said was the closest he could find to soy.

"Hey Velvet," Glen giggled. "Tell me I've had a bad day and hand me the bottle of sauce." She squinted at him suspiciously, but did as he asked. "Oh, I see. Kikkoman when he's down, huh?"

She didn't understand why he wouldn't stop giggling. "What was the joke?"

"Don't worry about it," he laughed. "It'd take too long to explain."

Finally when it was all but done Velvet's mom showed up. She seemed surprised it was almost done, having been gone for a little less than half an hour, but pleased nonetheless.

"Where did you learn to do all this Glen?" Ms. Scarlatina asked from behind the pot of brown rice she was carrying.

"My father, mostly." Glen set the sizzling hot pan down on a hot plate and everyone took their seats around the small table. "He was the real wizard. I just picked up a few things."

"I certainly wish I could have met him."

Velvet's eyes instinctively flicked over to the guest at Glen, praying that he wasn't saddened. To her relief, he seemed to be okay. "Yeah. I wish so too."

Ms. Scarlatina clapped her hands together. "Well, no point in letting the food get cold. Since I didn't help much why don't you two dig in first?"

Knowing how much he enjoyed food, it was a surprising turn of events when Glen instead deferred to the two women and let them serve themselves first. When he got the food on his plate though, things returned to normal. Glen began inhaling the rice and vegetables like he was afraid someone would take it away.

"You know it's not a race, right?" Ms. Scarlatina asked.

Glen swallowed and grinned. "You know, my dad used to tell me that exact same thing. And then my mother would inevitably explain to me for the umpteenth time that it takes time for your stomach to register that it's full so if you eat quickly you overeat." He shrugged easily. "I mean, she's right, but I don't have to worry about that so much with aura now."

"And how's the aura been treating you at Beacon?"

"Pretty good."

"I'll say. You've gone from a civilian to a hunter in training leading a team in about three months. That has to be some kind of record." She took another bite of the meal, blowing on it carefully beforehand to cool it down. "This is quite good, Glen. A little more salt, perhaps, but quite good."

"Yeah, I guess so. Whatever I used wasn't as salty as soy, so I'd say that's a fair assessment. Maybe a dash of garlic salt if we do it again."

To Velvet the meal was excellent. Whatever gripes Glen and her mother had she didn't notice, and once again she couldn't help but be impressed at the wealth of knowledge and skills he seemingly brought out of nowhere.

The dinner was lovely. The conversation was lively and animated, and after the dishes had been washed and cleared away they sat down to play the World Of Remnant board game. Glen had apparently never played it before, and stumbled through the first round getting absolutely decimated by the two Faunus. By the second round, however, Glen had figured out the ins and outs of the game and began carefully setting up his pieces.

Velvet was the first one to go. Her mother all but ignored Glen, who made continuous but weak efforts to encroach on her territory that were easily beaten back. Instead Ms. Scarlatina focused on her greatest opposition from the last round, strategically decimating Vale's forces with aerial bombardment from her Atlas fleet. Velvet desperately tried to hold onto as much land as possible. It was a losing battle, and after a long struggle Velvet had almost no troops left.

That was when Glen seized his opportunity. The probing airships from Mistral to Atlas stopped, and suddenly the massive force he had been building in silence swept in and stormed through the remainder of Velvet's worn out troops, securing most of Vale in a single swoop.

From there Velvet was eliminated, much as she grumbled and complained. From there it was up to Glen to claim the victory, and it looked like he was in a position to make good on that potential. He put Vale's resources to work expanding his war machine, solidifying strongholds and starting the advance towards Atlas. The first wave pushed Ms. Scarlatina completely out of Vale territory and trapped her in the frozen north.

Then the mistakes began. In his enthusiasm Glen tried to concentrate a large invasion on a single point, only to be decimated by wave after wave of nevermores that shredded his airships and boats. Even those that survived were soon set upon by Ursa and Grimm.

By the end Atlas, who had been virtually unaffected by Grimm incursions, walked all over Vale's forces that were dealing with constant large scale assaults.

"That's just unfair." Glen moaned as Velvet's mother held up the passive card that had allowed her to win. "Let me see that. 'Nanochip Dispersion: Requires Level 8 R&D…' blah blah blah, terms and conditions, 'Every turn the player adds two murder of Nevermore and one pack of Beowolves to their hand. Every two turns player can roll for a den of Ursai. These Grimm will not attack friendly forces.' Oh my Atlanta that is the cheapest card I've ever seen in my life."

"She always wins when she plays Atlas," Velvet agreed. "It just forces you to spend so much time upgrading Grimm defense on all your units that there's hardly time to do anything else unless you target her R&D centers right at the beginning. Which I was _trying_ to do but I had no help."

Glen threw up his hands in defense. "Woah there, I'm _real_ sorry I ruined the plan that was never communicated to me. That's _my bad."_

"Yeah, it is."

Ms. Scarlatina snatched her trump card with a delighted cackle. "All I know is that victory is mine, kiddos. Better luck next time."

"This is just like Risk," groaned Glen, leaning back in his chair. "Or maybe Monopoly. Welcome to destroying family night."

"Peter don't lean back in the chair. It loosens the legs."

There was a sudden moment of tension around the table - or at least between the two Scarlatina's. Velvets mouth dropped open in a slight 'o', but her mother just shook her head slightly at the unintentional gaffe. Glen, fortunately, seemed to be oblivious.

"Huh?" he asked eloquently, pulling a hand away from his mouth after a large yawn.

"Don't tip the chair back dear. It loosens the legs."

"Yes ma'am." Settling the chair back down, Glen stood and stretched languidly. "As much as I would love another opportunity to try and take Remnant for my own, I'm bushed. I thank you for the entertainment and the meal and I will take my leave."

"Thank you for the same, Glen." Ms. Scarlatina stood and crossed over for a quick hug. "Goodnight honey."

"Goodnight Ms. Scarlatina. Night Velvet."

"Night," Velvet called after him with a small wave.

Ms. Scarlatina stood and leaned against the door as Glen left their apartment and made their way up to his own. There was a moment of silence as she watched after him before answering her daughter's unspoken question. "He does remind you of Peter, doesn't he?"

"No," replied Velvet honestly, still a little surprised at what her mother had revealed. "Not really."

"They're not dissimilar in appearance."

"Maybe."

The elder faunus chuckled softly. "Your brother always did love teasing you. And they both have a knack for getting into trouble with the best of intentions." Ms. Scarlatina shook her head. "Glen's a wonderful young man. He's had a hard time much as he tries to hide it. He needs a family."

"Is that what you're doing?" Velvet wanted to clarify with _Is it for him or for you,_ but didn't have the courage to voice her thought.

"Perhaps." There was a moment of quiet before a small smile pulled up the corners of her mouth. "I hope."

* * *

 **A/N: Merry Christmas and a happy New Year to you all! I hope those resolutions are going well. I know I've already been working on mine since I came back from school in December. It was a crazy semester, and between the workload, me hating the cafeteria food, and eating at weird hours, my diet primarily consisted of Taco Bell and Whataburger. It was fun while it lasted, but now I found myself twenty pounds heavier and I'm not talking muscle. Welcome to the freshman 15 in sophomore year.**

 **So, I'm back into hitting the gym hard. Getting back into lifting heavy wasn't too hard but dear God do I hate running. I've been managing a few miles a day and it sucks. I miss the days where I could mostly just lift and eat healthy. It does work though; already knocked seven pounds back off.**

 **Anyway, enough about me.**

 **I wrote this mostly in third person - a step away from what I normally do - kind of as an experiment and kind of as an attempt to challenge myself. I wanted to show some things I couldn't in first person. So I wrote most of it, looked back, and thought that I could do better in first person. So I get a few thousand words into the first person re-write and decide I like the third person anyway and just finished that out.**

 **So yeah… but I had fun with it. A little expansion of the Scarlatina family. And Salem. Oooh Glen, the train is coming my boy. It's coming.**

 **Huge thanks to everyone who has followed, favorited, and commented. It's really appreciated, and I mean that sincerely. I hope you're still enjoying and I like to think I'm improving. Anyway my dudes, catch you on the flip side!**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Welcome back! A little TL;DR for my note after this: I care too much. It's not good. Working that into the story as a flaw.**

 **And now, back to the show.**

* * *

It's amazing how quickly life can change. And I'm not just talking 'thrown into another world change', because that's about the biggest shake up you could get. Like rolling a natural one a hundred turns in a row.

No, I'm talking about your outlook. If you had asked me how I felt scant weeks ago, I… well, I probably wouldn't have been honest with you. But I would have put myself down as depressed, anxious, and nihilistic.

Nihilistic. It's a funny word, huh? But what did I really have? I had no family, few friends, and nearly no control over my life - only depending on the good will of people I had met months before. I had nothing to look forward to in an alien world that I barely knew. The only reason I didn't really contemplate ending it was because I didn't want to hurt the friends I had made - not out of any concern for myself.

Now, I'm not saying that all of that disappeared. A lot of that was still hanging around, actually. But the little love and support that I had received had buoyed me up. I may have still had little in the way of a grand purpose but damn if I didn't have something to look forward to.

Namely, the school dance.

Now it wasn't necessarily the dance itself that I was looking forward to. If you wanted me to break-dance, or do anything imitating some hip-hop move… no. I had rhythm, and that was about it. My selection of moves was extraordinarily white and I never really got better.

Partner dancing I could handle. Waltz, two step, swing, that kinda thing. At some point in my freshman year Phys Ed class that had been one of the units. God only knows why, but I picked it up pretty fast.

Actually I was pretty salty about the whole ordeal, because on a cork board outside the gym there was a 'star wall' where your photo went up if you were best in a particular unit. When I absolutely crushed everyone in wrestling, did I get a star up there? No. When I did dancing? Oh yes, he was the best, stick his face up there.

On the bright side, maybe you could say I was a versatile athlete. On the downside that's a WMD you put into the hands of the football seniors.

Good times, I tell you. Good times.

That may have been a bit of a tangent, but as a smoothly executed transition let's go from _partner dancing_ to _partner_ straight up _._ I was going to ask someone to the dance. And that was proving to be just as worrying to me for a variety of reasons.

"So, you asking anyone to the dance?"

I blasted myself in the face with a stream of water, trying to cool off after an evening session training with Yang. "Thinking about it."

"Oh, just thinking about it?" Ignoring her madly wiggling eyebrows was a chore, but one that I managed to just about pull off.

 _I would never be this obnoxious._ A sigh escaped my lips and I had to be honest with myself. _Yes. Yes I would. But that doesn't mean I have to like it._

"Yeah, I'm not sure."

"You better."

I tilted my head. "Why?"

"I'll just _choc_ that up to inexperience."

There was an expectant pause and I just stared blankly at Yang. Her vocal inflection indicated there had been a pun there - I had hung around with her long enough to realize that, god help me - but for the life of me I couldn't figure out what it was. As the pause extended into awkward territory she sighed and tried again.

"I'm just saying, you need to _buck_ up and make a choice."

I just vaguely spread my hands in the universal palms up _I don't get it_ gesture. For my trouble I got a hair flip and eye roll.

"Should I just _Adel_ you straight?"

"Please," I sighed.

"When you get it your face is going to go _Scarlet…_ "

If you're wanting to slap me around and throttle me for not getting it, well, two things: One, you have the advantage of having it literally spelled out for you. Two, it was at this point that I in fact realized what she was on about.

"... _tina."_

"Yeah, yeah, okay. Adel and Scarlatina. I get it, well done." Yang's smile was just a little too smug, so I figured I'd take a little bit of the wind out of her sails. "But the _choc_ was weak. You're pushing the connection to _Coco_ a little thin."

The blonde sniffed imperiously. "Oh really?"

"Yeah. And what does _buck_ have to do with anything?"

"Don't you know, Mister Know-It-All? It's a male rabbit."

"No, it's for a male deer," I responded immediately.

"So what is a male rabbit called then?" Yang asked innocently. Too innocently.

"I … don't know," I admitted. "But that doesn't mean that it's a buck."

"Humph. Well, coincidentally, I still have this page open." Yang thrust her scroll into my face, close enough that I couldn't see a thing. "Care to read it for me?"

"Yeah yeah," I muttered, snatching the scroll away. I had a pretty good idea of what I was going to find, and my suspicions did not disappoint. "Okay, fine. But how long have you been holding onto that one?"

"Oh, just since you saw CFVY off on their mission this morning."

I returned Yang's raised eyebrow gesture. "Any particular reason?"

"Oh come _on,_ " sighed Yang. "Coco was literally trying to get you to wear her like a coat, and then Velvet stepped in and helped split you two up so she could get in her own little goodbye! Give a girl credit, won't you?"

Admittedly my face reddened a little. It was true that Coco had practically draped herself over me as they left in her ever familiar evocative manner. What surprised me was how much tension it caused me - and no, that wasn't all sexual tension. I found myself uncomfortable because Velvet was there. So, over Coco's shoulder, I mouthed something to Velvet to the effect of _please help me_ \- and so she did. But now there was a worm of worry inside me that wasn't there the last semester.

"So which one are you going to ask?"

And that was the crux of the matter right there, but I was loath to share that with anyone else. So what did I do? I fell back on my wisecracking ways.

"Oh, I thought I'd ask Ruby to the dance."

My eyes flicked over to the golden volcano, waiting for the eruption that was surely imminent. Yang just smirked in response, seeming to take pleasure in my surprise.

"What, waiting for me to blow up?"

"Well… I'd be lying if I said no."

That got a laugh from my trainer. "Well, first off short stack, I know you're just trying to get a rise out of me. And even if you weren't, you're not a bad guy. I know you're not going to try anything and she'd probably have fun."

"Huh," I murmured half to myself. "Well, I guess congratulations for surprising me. I don't have you figured out as well as I thought."

Yang hummed to herself in satisfaction. "Anyway, I know you're not that stupid. I think Coco and Velvet would near enough have a stroke."

"Hmm." Now it was my turn to hum, this time in disbelief.

"What, don't believe me?"

I shrugged halfheartedly. "Well, Coco probably would."

"And so I ask again, who are you going to pick? Who do you like?" My silence dragged on long enough that Yang decided to revise her statement. "Do you actually like either of them?"

"I do," I said. "I do. I… well, I like them both actually."

"Hmm. Though so. So which one is it going to be?"

I sat there on the edge of the sweat-stained ring, my answer in my mind. I knew which one I was going to pick, but that was of little comfort. "I don't know."

"You don't know?" Yang's disbelief was evident.

"I don't know," I lied again stubbornly, not making eye contact.

"A bit of advice then?" A firm hand on my shoulder brought my head back up. "Make a choice and stick to it. Trust the other one to get over their disappointment. And don't do the doubly stupid thing and ask neither of them." I winced a little at that. The thought had occurred to me. "You can't string them on forever."

"Yeah. Thanks for the advice."

"Great!" Yang grinned and patted me on the back hard enough to make me wince. "Well, now that I've done you that favor would you do me one?"

"I might. What's going on in your world that needs little old me to help?" Hopping down from the mat I picked up my towel and began to mop up my still dripping wet face. I may have played it off reluctantly but I was more than ready to help out Yang. One, it feels good to help a friend. Two, it would be a welcome distraction from my own worries.

"Well, Weiss and Blake are not really getting on so well."

"I can imagine."

"Yeah. It's like walking on SDC and Faunus eggshells ever since we got back from break. Weiss is basically ignoring Blake and acting like nothing ever happened."

I frowned, my opinion of the Schnee heiress not having been particularly high in the first place. "Really? She's just ignoring her?"

"I think she was more worried than she let on."

"You do?" I couldn't help the doubt that sprang unbidden from my lips.

Yang just nodded, taking no offense. "I do. I don't know exactly for what reason, but I think she was worried for Blake. And the way she deals with that it by tightening her fist, ya know? Someone just needs to slap their two heads together."

"And... you want me to slap their two heads together?"

"No."

 _Oh thank god,_ I breathed out in silent relief. Having to force that confrontation sounded like the opposite of fun. It would be down the ladder somewhere around splitting the atom with my bare hands.

"I want you to talk to Blake."

"About talking to Weiss?"

"Well, no, not directly. Not at all actually." Yang hopped off the mat to join me and we slowly started making our way towards the locker rooms. "Ever since your little escapade with the White Fang-"

"Sorry," I interjected. "My little escapade?"

"You participated, didn't you?"

"In service of _you_. In which I got seriously injured," I reminded her.

Yang just snorted. "Trying to dredge up some sympathy?"

"Yes, actually. I think a little sympathy is deserved."

Yang softened a little. "I really do appreciate what you did to help out; you know I do. But Blake's not done with it. She's been on an obsessive streak over the White Fang and I'm worried she's going to tear off after them solo again."

"That bad?"

We hesitated at the doors to the locker rooms to keep the conversation going a little longer, with only the soft clanking of weights in the background.

Yang shrugged. "You should go see her for yourself. She'll be in the library; she is most nights. I've already tried talking to her, but with the way things are she doesn't really trust the team for much. You got through to her before..."

"I'd say 'got through' is generous," I admitted. "I didn't do anything, really. It was just some luck."

"Well, whatever luck you had, maybe you could conjure it up again. Please?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'll see if there's anything I can do. Don't expect a miracle."

"Hey, anything would help. Just trying to keep this Oum-damned team from falling apart. You think they'd make me team leader."

"Maybe they will," I smirked, giving a faux salute. "See ya soon."

"See ya."

I retreated into the locker room and immediately blasted myself with the hottest water I could stand. Relaxing under the shower-head, I began to plot.

That sounds rather devious, doesn't it? I suppose in a way it was, but in others it resembled doing a spread for a debate. All I did was generate the list of possible objections that Blake could come up with. Once that was done I generated a suitably crushing response to each.

Surely I'm not the only one to do this. You know you're going to have the argument so you prep all of yours? It's not 4D chess.

Tossing my gym clothes into the little drawstring bag I had appropriated for this purpose I got changed back into my Beacon uniform. Part of it, at least. For the casual roaming of the halls I tended to leave the blazer and vest behind, just rolling up the sleeves to the shirt and undoing the top button.

I looked quite suave and rugged like that.

Probably.

Anyway, I kept the bag slung over my shoulder and weaved my way through the halls to the library. Once there I began a methodical search for the raven-haired faunus.

It's a patented technique. It's the "I'm in a department store and can't find mom" technique. Familiar? Start around the outsides, looking down the aisles and working your way inwards?

Since I can use that method to quickly hunt down a moving target in a Walmart, finding one stationary girl at a terminal was a piece of cake. Prepping what I thought to be my opening argument, I advanced.

What stopped me was just how _tired_ Blake looked. Her normally luxuriant raven waves looked like they had been hastily brushed back after and actual raven had nested in them. If you didn't look too carefully she was pale enough to be mistaken for Casper in a wig. The cherry on the top though? The circles under her eyes were so dark that for a moment I wondered if she had actually recovered from the concussion Roman had given her.

Silently I pulled out a chair and sat next to her. Blake flicked through a few more pages of information on the terminal, not glancing my way.

"Yang, I told you I have to do this."

"Well, I'll certainly tell her when I see her," I said mildly.

That got a reaction. Dragging herself away from the screen, Blake blinked owlishly for a second or two. "Oh. Did Yang send you?"

"It's nice to see you too, Blake, and conscious at that. I'm glad to hear you're recovering well." If I expected an apology and an inquiry after my health I was sorely mistaken; forget about a 'thank you' for services rendered. A slight narrowing of the eyes was all I got.

 _How rude,_ I thought bitterly. _No, actually. Is it too much to expect a little civility after I potentially saved her life?_

 _But… she's very sleep deprived. And probably doesn't even know you took that shot while she was unconscious. Take a breath. Cut her some slack. Play it nice and easy - not like last time where you just blew up. Get on her side._

"Yeah, Yang did send me."

"I'm not going to change my mind just because it's you. You can go tell Yang that."

Brushing past the dismissive statement, I leaned back in the chair balancing it on two legs. "Well, I've heard Yang's side. I'd like to hear your perspective."

Blake barely dignified my ploy with a response. "Get Yang to tell you."

"I'd rather you did," I pressed.

"I'd rather I not. I don't want to take the time and I'm not going to change my mind."

"If you're taking the time to talk to me now couldn't you take a few minutes to tell me what's going on and get rid of me?"

Blake paused. "You're right." My hopes were briefly raised, only to be dashed. "It's taking to long to try and explain things. Go ask Yang for the story." The Faunus turned and went back to her work, completely ignoring me as I fumed internally.

 _Really? I can extract information from Pyrrha on a guess and play Cardin like a fiddle and I can't get a simple 'this is what I'm doing' from Blake?_ My lips pursed in contemplation. _Coming off that business with Yang I'd say I'm losing my touch. I knew Blake had some trust issues, but she's half asleep for Christ's sake. I can't even make an argument to her if she refuses to engage with me point blank._

Once my initial frustrations slid away, I spent a moment in quiet contemplation on how to approach the problem. Of course, I could always walk away, but what was the fun in that? Besides, then I'd have to worry about my own issues rather than someone else's.

Yeah, no thanks.

"How can I help?"

"Huh?"

I almost grinned as Blake's face scrunched up, as if trying to sniff out my motives. "Let me help you out. At least then you'll have someone semi-coherent to run your ideas past."

"I don't need your help."

"Really? Well, okay then. I'll just sit here and wait until you want to throw me a bone."

"Does that make you a dog?" snarked Blake.

"Does that bother you?" I raised an eyebrow, and Blake rolled her eyes to indicate that yes, she got the joke, and no, I wasn't as funny as I thought I was. "Actually I wouldn't mind being compared to a dog. Loyal, lovable-"

"Dumb?"

"Maybe," I chuckled. "But dogs are first and foremost a social animal. Unlike cats, which are more individualistic. Some people like to think you can determine if a person is more introverted or extroverted based on if they're a dog or cat person."

"But you don't?" Blake asked, catching on to my tone.

"Not really. There's more to people than that. Take me for example. I'd say I'm more extroverted, but if I were going to have a pet it would be a cat."

Blake crossed her arms and stared me down. "Flattery will get you nowhere."

A bark of laughter escaped me - pun intended, I suppose. "No! Not that. I love dogs, but I'm too lazy for one. Cats are much easier to take care of."

"But if you weren't lazy you would be a dog person?"

I shrugged. "I guess, yeah."

"So maybe those people do have a point in that assumption then."

"Maybe," I said. "After all, you follow the conventions of the cat, don't you? Introverted, independent, the whole nine yards."

Her amber eyes slitted and she disdainfully turned back to her task. "You've kept me talking for too long."

"Oh come on Blake. At least this conversation went a lot better than our last one, right?" When I got no reply, I scooted in and peered over her shoulder. "Whatcha looking at?"

What greeted me was a virtual map of Vale, littered with dots in the corner of the screen. The rest was taken up by several listings of the various dust shops that had been robbed over the preceding eight months. Each robbery corresponded to a dot on the map, and multiple robberies at the same location were indicated by a different colored dot. Warmer colors indicated a higher frequency and vice versa.

"What do you hope to gain by that?" I asked softly as I scanned the data.

Blake sighed, seemingly accepting that I wasn't planning on going away anytime soon. "I'm hoping that I can figure out where they're storing the stolen dust."

"Hmmm. You're hoping an increase in frequency in a certain area indicates that their base of operations is in the vicinity?" I scanned the data available, quickly homing in on a cluster of yellow and red points. "So, on that assumption they would be in the industrial district somewhere?"

"Something like that."

"But there are so many other variables that could be involved," I argued. "Not the least of which is the stores themselves. Or storage facilities. Maybe storage facilities have weaker security and greater amounts of dust and that's why the industrial district was disproportionately targeted. Or maybe that area's weak on cops."

Blake groaned and put her head in her hands, but I wasn't done yet.

"Let's not forget that once acquired, they need a physical place big enough to store it all, if not more than one. I mean, they have to be in…" I flicked through the numbers in the reports, doing some quick addition. "...the tens of thousands of pounds worth. So they need a location where this can be delivered and stored conspicuously. Remember the Bullheads too? That storehouse doesn't even need to be in the city. All they would need is a temporary holding location."

"What were you in your last life, a criminal mastermind?" she said pithily.

"Honestly? No. I'm making this up as I go along. But it does make a certain sort of sense, doesn't it?"

"So you could be wrong."

I shrugged again, the gesture seeming to be my favorite action for the day. "I could be right too. It's no more or less valid than your theory. See what I'm getting at though?"

"That I'm wasting my time?"

"You said it, not me." She growled and grumbled and muttered a few unsavory things that were generally tossed in my direction but I felt I had scored a point there. "You know who would be able to figure these things out? The police. The government. People with access to much more information and experience than one student with a RemNet terminal."

"If they would do anything."

I rubbed my temples. At least here I could get into one of my pre-prepared arguments. "Okay, Blake? Let's assume the police and the government are super racist. Like, the worst case scenario here. Who would be the top of their list to take out?" A sullen silence followed that, but I was determined to have her say it. "C'mon. Best guess here."

"The White Fang," she said. "But the police still discriminate against faunus. Are you saying that's right?"

"I'm saying it's a moot point."

The amber orbs flashed with anger. "So racist discrimination is a moot point?"

"No," I continued patiently. "I'm saying it's moot in the context of what you're doing. If you're trying to hunt down the White Fang - Torchwick connection and the missing dust then your goals are aligned with them and that won't change no matter how racist they are. And the fact still remains that they're much better informed, equipped, and more experienced than you are. If your problem is with them mistreating Faunus then go after that, not the White Fang."

Blake glanced furtively around for a second before leaning in an hissing out the next words. "I was a _part_ of the White Fang. I think I'm more experienced and better informed than the VPD to try and figure this out."

"Blake, in the interest of saving time, do you want me to lay out all the flaws in that or do you think you can figure them out?"

It was one unhappy kitty that faced me over that table. Though that bow was still in place I could see it twitch back as her ears tried to show her irritation. Blake wasn't dumb; far from it. She knew exactly where I would go. It was just an emotional cinder block that was holding her down. For my part I tried my very best not to look too camp as I silently celebrated my success. I mean, last time I just succeeded by virtue of dumb luck. This time I had actually made a dent intentionally.

"Well, there's more than one way to pluck a nevermore," she muttered to herself.

Well, if _that_ wasn't an obvious tip-off that Blake was still planning something I don't know what was.

"What now, Blake?"

"Nothing."

I raised an eyebrow. "Nothing? No stroke of genius?"

"I don't have another brilliant idea," Blake said, all innocence.

"Blake, I'm not an idiot. What're you thinking of doing?" We stared each other down for a second, neither of us giving. "Maybe I could help you out."

"What is it with you and 'helping' today?"

"You think I have some ulterior motive?" I challenged.

"Yes."

"Well, you're right. On behalf of Yang, at least, I'd rather not see you do something stupid and get hurt. At least if I'm involved in the process I can help steer the ship so to speak. So if this is a good idea, impress me."

There was a long silence that stretched out until Blake turned back to her screen. A heavy sigh escaped my lips and I dropped my head down on the table. She still didn't trust me - or at least she thought I would be against whatever idea she had concocted.

 _Fair enough,_ I mused to myself. _I can't fault her for not opening herself up like a book to me. Even given the little operation she and I went on we still have barely spent any time together._

I raised my head to give it one last shot. "Hey, if you're not going to talk to me about it please at least consider Yang."

"Why? You think I can't handle this on my own?"

"Blake, last time your plan nearly got the both of us killed. We were at the mercy of Roman Torchwick and the only reason he let us go is because we were too minor of a problem for him to deal with right then."

The thought was sobering for the both of us. I don't think either one of us wanted to admit how helpless we had been at that moment. It was even more worrying for me, because I was surely closing in on the short straw in regards to encounters with the flamboyant thief. You know what they say; third time lucky.

"Hey, I'm just glad we got out of there alright," I said. "What matters is we're still drawing breath, yeah?"

"Glen…" Blake sighed. "I… appreciate the offer. But you've done enough for me. You don't need to do any more."

 _Huh. I guess I misunderestimated her. That's a sincere apology and heartfelt 'thank you' all in one coming from Blake._

"Thank you. I'm not here to fulfill a quota, though. I'd really like to help. And I know Yang would too. She's got a pretty good head on her shoulders. She's not all blonde." I chuckled at my own joke, and then instinctively ducked and glanced around much to Blake's amusement.

"She's not here, you know." Her face scrunched up and she clamped her hands on the back of her neck, massaging the base of her skull.

"What's up?"

"Just a headache," she muttered, wincing. "It's fine."

"Have you been drinking enough water?" I asked.

"Probably not," she admitted.

"And you certainly haven't been getting enough sleep."

"Four hours a night. Sometimes six."

"Jeez," I exclaimed. "That little? For how long?"

"More or less since the hospital released me."

There was a soft sound as my mouth fell open. "Blake, that's almost two weeks! And - and what about the concussion you got? Didn't the doctor prescribe you some R&R?"

"He said about a week or two, but we have aura. It's just a bruise essentially and it won't take a week to heal a bruise."

"Blake, you need to take care of yourself, you really do," I said softly. "You know that in people without aura, neurological damage almost never gets better? Nerve cells can't replicate like other tissues can."

"So?"

"So aura boosts natural processes, not makes new ones. It doesn't matter how fast the rest of your body can heal; neurological damage is going to stick with you for a long time. You need _rest_ if you're going to let your mind recover. And do you know what sleep debt is?"

"Sleep debt?"

I nodded. "Yes. Essentially the brain keeps an accurate track of how much sleep you've missed out on for up to two weeks. So, assuming that you've been getting six hours a night for two weeks and you need eight…" I paused and drew imaginary scribbles in the air for my mental calculations. "Then… you would be twenty-eight hours behind. So, you would need to sleep at least ten hours a day for two weeks to be back at one hundred percent. Or just sleep eight hours a night and wait two weeks."

Blake frowned, still massaging her head. "How do you know that?"

Once again my favorite action for the day came into its own as my shoulder rose and fell. "Well, part of it was anatomy and physiology. Part of it was the research I did into what aura was and wasn't capable of. And actually the sleep deprivation was from psychology, which surprised me. I woulda thought that would have been an A&P thing, but no. Psychology. Probably because of all the adverse mental effects that come along with a lack of sleep. Like irritability, poor judgment, and eventually depression."

Blake just shook off my concerns and forged on without giving them any consideration, much to my annoyance. "I have to do this, Glen. I have to."

Involuntarily my right hand began massaging my temple, mimicking the Faunus across from me. "Blake you're the only person in my life right now that can get under my skin, you know that?"

"I'll take it as a compliment."

"You better," I griped. "I have to live with three absolute assholes and they're not half as infuriating as you."

"And why's that?"

I threw my hands up in despair. "I don't know, Blake. Maybe because I give a damn about what happens to you. Maybe it's because you've got an intellect to rival my own and yet here you are making choices that are hurting you mentally, physically, and preventing recovery all on a fool's errand.

"This isn't a fool's errand. It has to be done. And I'm the one who can do it!"

I snorted. "There's a problem with us, Blake, a problem that stems from our intelligence." Blake cocked her head and leaned forward. "We're too good at rationalizing. We can justify anything we're doing. You're doing it now. You know I'm right but you can come up with a hundred reasons why it has to be done anyway."

"And if you're to be believed you're just as guilty."

"Oh I know I am, Blake. I'm aware. And you know what that makes us? Hypocrites. Hypocrites and liars who have a hard time getting out of a rut," I growled. "Maybe that's why you can bother me so much. Because you're just reminding me of the parts of myself I don't like."

The frigidity of Blake's response could have iced over Death Valley in July. "Thank you, Glen. I'm glad to hear I embody what you hate about yourself."

"Oh, that's not what I mean and you know it. Tell me I'm wrong, Blake." I sighed heavily, putting my head in my hands as my insides coiled up like a spring. "I hate arguing like this."

"No you don't," Blake laughed.

"Yes, I do. Not the - not the debate. Over issues or facts or ideas. That's enjoyable. This kind of - this kind of personal conflict it - it causes me a lot of tension, actually," I said haltingly. "I don't like it."

"If you dislike it so much, why did you start it?"

"Maybe because I'm an idiot, Blake. Or maybe I care enough to say something." My last statement stuck out to me, and when I realized why I couldn't help the mirth that bubbled up in my chest. "Oh, oh my god. That's it. I'm becoming my parents. My mom only said that to me a thousand times."

 _Jesus, this is a mess,_ I thought. _Well, time to back up the last two minutes here. I was doing fine before that. It was actually a very civil discussion. And then I've got to go dig too deep and get a little too personal. Does that make me the asshole here? Well, at least I'm a well intentioned asshole._

"Sorry Blake," I said. "I went a little too far there. I'm not your parents and I shouldn't try to be. You're free to make decisions as you please. I guess just… at least let Yang help you. She's probably just as insufferable as me, but at least she's not the jackass I am. And she really cares about what happens to you." I stood, holding out a hand to shake, a twinkle coming back to my eye. "It's a shame we keep meeting only for me to lecture you. I hope one of these days we can spend some time together and not fight like cats and dogs."

It was a small thing, and it did come with a second of hesitation, but I felt relieved when Blake let her hand be clasped in mine. "Mmhmm."

"Alright. I look forward to it." My hand formed a little finger gun I pointed at her. "And do try and get a little rest, hey?"

"I'll try."

"Alright. See you around."

I shoved my hands in my pockets and walked out of the library, my head down. The wooden floor squeaked comfortably under my feet, having been well worn by thousands of students before me. Flipping out my scroll in a now-familiar motion I began to fiddle with the keys.

 **GLEN: So I had that chat**

Pushing through the library doors, I watched the reply come in.

 **YANG: Details boy**

 **GLEN: She's not exactly come around**

 **YANG: Sounds like Blakey**

 **YANG: Anything tho**

 **GLEN: Well, I may have accidentally jump-started her on a new track and come off a bit dickish**

 **GLEN: So not the best**

 **YANG:**

As I started to read the next line of text I bumped into someone, almost losing my scroll in the process. "Oh! Sorry." I gave a little apologetic wave. "My bad."

"That's alright. Think nothing of it."

It was her voice that caught my attention. It was rich and sensual, the kind of tone that Coco probably would have murdered to possess. The body that it was attached to she probably would have murdered for too. A tight red dress clung tightly to some very mature curves - not that I pay attention to that sort of thing - and her golden eyes glittered with something like amusement.

"What's your name?"

"Me? Oh, I'm Glen. Glen Foray."

"So _you're_ Glen," she purred. "I've heard ever so much about you."

Now _that_ surprised me. I was fairly confident I'd have remembered seeing this vision before - unless she was bluffing, of course. But then why would she?

"I wasn't aware we had met."

"We haven't," she smiled. "Just a mutual friend. It's nice to put a face to the name."

My brow remained furrowed. "So, are you an upperclassman, or…"

"We just transferred in from Haven, actually."

"Oh! Okay. Well, welcome to Beacon. It was nice to meet you."

"It was nice to meet you too. You'll come over and meet my team sometime, won't you?" she crooned.

"Yeah, yeah. I'd like that," I agreed.

"I'll be seeing you, Glen."

"See ya," I waved.

My eyes lingered a little as she sauntered off in the direction of the library. What was that phrase? Something like 'hate to see her leave but love to watch her go'? Yeah. Someone knew what they were talking about when they crafted that gem. I mean, god damn.

And then my brain kicked back into gear and I almost immediately frowned. For such a short interaction there were a bunch of inconsistencies rattling around in my head. I knew there were some transfer students that had arrived just before this semester had begun - in preparation for the Vytal Festival, I think. If that was so, she couldn't have been around Beacon for more than a week or so.

 _Mutual friend implies someone I am friends with,_ I mused. _So, SYBR, JNPR, or CFVY. Although probably just Yang, Ruby, Jaune, Coco, or Velvet if she's heard 'so much'. Really though, why would I come up in conversation? Reasonably I'd probably only come up casually as part of a conversation with Yang, her being my trainer and all. But then why in any detail?_

 _I guess I'll just ask Yang about… about…_ It was then I realized that I hadn't gotten a name from the mystery woman. Frankly, it wasn't that much of a problem. There was probably only a very limited number of transfer teams. Anyway, even failing that, I was confident the description 'hotter than a blacktop under the Texas sun' was a more than adequate description to track her down.

Still, it was another strange miss in the conversation and raised a flag in my mind. Not warning flags, really. Just little things that made me say, 'huh, that's odd'. But then my scroll buzzed and that train of thought was lost to the messages I had received.

 **YANG: So what did you do**

 **YANG: Trying to smash**

 **YANG: Just saying if you asked me I could have told you she's not down**

I rolled my eyes at that string of texts, almost able to hear the blonde's teasing through the screen.

 **GLEN: No. It went okay until the end when I went off and tried to lecture her**

 **YANG: RIP**

 **YANG: Well, thanks for trying**

 **GLEN: Yeah. Try and make her get some sleep though**

 **YANG: Easier said than done bud**

With my scroll out all I had to do was open the door to my dorm and slide in, pushing it shut behind me. I weaved around some of the clothes on the floor and flopped down on my bed, kicking my shoes off as I did so.

"Hey Glen, enjoy your little 'training session'?" called Dove from across the room.

"I'm sure I have no idea what you mean," I deadpanned.

"You know. With the blonde bimbo."

My eyebrows raised and I stared back at the mess of brown hair. "Oh, you mean Yang."

"Of course I mean Yang!" He wound up and threw what I thought to be a pair of socks at me which bounced harmlessly off one of my shoulders. "C'mon, give me some details."

"We worked out. Then we sparred with weapons, and she basically bodied me for half an hour straight."

"I wouldn't expect anything less," cut in Sky Lark. "It's not like you have a chance at competing."

"Not with Yang, no. But I'm not the one that took a hard L at the hands of Jaune, Sky."

Russel chuckled a little, even though it drew his teammate's ire. "Damn, he got you there!"

Sky flushed a little under the laughter. On the first day back in Goodwitch's class Sky had been matched up against Jaune. My halberd wielding teammate had swaggered in with all the confidence in the world, but after a scrappy match Jaune had emerged the victor. I guess Jaune's training with Pyrrha was already starting to pay off.

"I'd wreck you, Foray," he blustered angrily.

"Then why haven't you come to the training sessions?" I asked innocently. "I'm sure Yang wouldn't mind me getting some practice with a different fighting style, and then we could really see what's what."

There was some more laughter and verbal posturing thrown every which way as they tried to establish their place in the pecking order. I didn't mind, really. I had started to figure them all out a little. Dove didn't really care that I was the leader - his mission was to just be as crude as possible. Sky had the 'I have to be better than you' complex, and would alternate between a standoffish silence or trying to prove his superiority. Russel just jumped in on whatever side was winning.

So, while I still wasn't able to give any orders, they would at least engage with me instead of ignoring me like they had tried in the beginning. Progress, people. I'll take what I can get.

"Hey, what classes do we got tomorrow?" I tossed the question to the room and hoped someone would answer.

"Oobleck, Goodwitch, Peach," replied Dove.

"Has Goodwitch posted the pairings yet?"

"I don't fucking know," said Dove as he scratched out an answer to a homework problem. "Has she?"

Muttering to myself I shut the text messenger and pulled open the Beacon schedule. "Uhh… it looks like she's going to talk about Vytal Festival entries, and then there's going to be some team matches tomorrow." I scrolled down the list, looking for GRBL. Gerbil. Man, what a name. "We are fighting… huh? That can't be right."

"What's up?" he asked.

"She has our entire team down to fight Pyrrha Nikos. She has to mean JNPR, right?"

"Probably," shrugged Dove.

"Huh," I said. I hadn't known Ms. Goodwitch to make mistakes, but I supposed to err was human.

 _Besides, it would be unfair to have a four versus one even if Pyrrha is the one. Good as she is in single combat I think four to one odds are going to stretch her too far._

Satisfied with my deductions, I slowly rolled back out of bed and jockeyed for some desk space to finish up the worksheet for Oobleck's class the next morning. It may not have seemed like much, but I was happy to get back into a routine of doing schoolwork. I mean, my biggest problems were figuring out my whole school dance situation and that Blake probably thought I was a pious dick. In the scheme of things that wasn't so bad, was it?

After all, it could hardly get worse.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, I'm back, and better than ever. As for why I've been gone? Easy. School, my dudes and dudettes. Plus I signed myself up for a five week creative writing course where I was basically dropping short stories and screenplays left and right for that entire time, on top of all the other work.**

 **Anyway, enough complaining.**

 **I'd like to take a moment to address where I'm taking this story and why. Primarily, it's because I need to find a way to play into my weaknesses. And when I talk weaknesses, I mean real weaknesses and flaws in me. And that's where I come to something of an issue.**

 **I genuinely do have a great memory and exhaustive wealth of knowledge at my command. I'm a good athlete, intelligent, confident, decent looking, and really good with people. And of course, none of that is perfect. I'm not a top tier athlete by any stretch, I don't know everything, and I'm sure that when I get into an argument sometimes I can come off as hard headed and superior (kinda like with Blake. Awaken, lecture mode). But those are minor things overall.**

 **So how do I really challenge myself? How am I any better than a Mary Sue if I just focus on my numerous strengths? So I dug deep and gave voice to my biggest flaw.**

 **If I really love someone else (and I'm mostly talking platonic/familial), I then care about what they think of me. Cripplingly so. I would rather lie through my teeth and suffer all sorts of miseries than let them know I had messed up - and not in some noble 'I'm shouldering my own burden' way. In an 'I'm so fearful of their disapproval I'll lie to them straight up' kind of way. It doesn't matter how much I need help, I won't ask for it until the consequences start spilling out on those very people I hold so dearly.**

 **That actually became a significant issue for me last year. I became increasingly stressed and anxious as I tried to hold everything together until eventually the facade finally came down and I dropped into depression. What might have been a series of minor things snowballed into a major shit show because I tried to fix it all myself and failed.**

 **So, back to the crossroads. I could stay in the shallow end and make my flaws 'Oh, I'm not that strong yet' and 'Oh, everyone's out to get me' and 'sometimes I'm sad' and 'I' work too hard'. I could make some more serious flaw up for myself. Or, I could actually get real as fuck and go for it. I guess you guys now know which direction I'm going.**

 **Besides, it kinda works even better now Glen's stuck in Remnant, huh? Having lost his family is only going to exacerbate the issue.**

 **Not fishing for sympathy, not trying to show off? nothing like that. I'm doing way better and I'm getting my shit together. Just being real and explaining why it's on a more shippy, upbeat track. I need those close relationships to be built. We're just winding up like an MLB pitcher.**

 **Damn, let me just spill my guts on the internet to complete strangers. Well, I'll see you guys next time for my therapy session. I've got break coming up this week so I plan on doing some writing and getting another chapter out soon. Now I'm gonna enjoy my balmy 80 degree F outdoors.**

 **Sorry Canada. I miss you, but not that much. Catch you guys on the flip side.**


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: I dunno what my iced tea bent has been of late. I've always liked it, but recently I've been getting some with every meal I can. It all culminated yesterday when I brewed myself a full pitcher and drank it all while I worked on schoolwork. So, 4-5 litres of peach tea down the hatch in about two hours.**

 **I split my bladder wide open at least three times. Do you think it could be related?**

 **I also swear I have developed dyslexia. I've never had so many typos and just incorrect words to fix in my life. By a large margin. Oh well...**

* * *

Did you know Pyrrha is really good at fighting?

The answer is no. No, you have no idea how insane that woman is. Her skill is nothing short of superhuman. The level of awareness, body control, reaction times…

Let me put it this way. You know in a movie where the protagonist fights a bunch of enemies and they have the perfect moves and timing to counter everyone? And you go, 'That's super cool, but they're only able to do that because it's been choreographed and rehearsed?'

That's Pyrrha in real life. She's literally an action hero. What, you don't trust this hard won information? Well, let me regale you with my tale of woe. Perhaps that will be more convincing.

It all started in the locker room right before our scheduled bout. I was trying to seriously prepare for the fight, but my teammates were not exactly in a similar state of mind.

"Ten lien to the dude who gets the finishing blow," offered Dove.

"You want to just give me that money now?" Sky mimed a thrust with his halberd. "Oum knows none of you are going to do it. Especially not Foray."

I let out an explosive sigh, catching the rubber ball and flinging it back at the wall. It was a stress thing; it helped me release some of the pre-game tension, so to speak. "You're confident today boys."

"Why shouldn't we be?" asked Dove. "It's a four v one, Glenny."

"Yeah, I know."

"Don't worry about him. He's just proving he's the coward we know he is. Four against one and he's still scared," sneered Sky.

It was all I could do to shake my head and not reply. It was the fact that it was a four on one that worried me so much. Funnily enough I hadn't been so worried when I thought it was going to be all of JNPR. Why? Because I knew with the power duo of Pyrrha and Nora supported by Ren and Jaune we would lose the fight. I didn't doubt that for a second.

Now though, there was something _to_ lose. Does that make sense? It wasn't a foregone conclusion anymore and that keyed me up.

In the little time I had spent in Glynda Goodwitch's class I had found out that she had a talent for matching students together in a way that would challenge one or both. Only rarely, if ever, did she place a student in a position where she thought they couldn't win.

So if she was matching all of us against Pyrrha she probably thought it would be a good match, and I would happily defer to Ms. Goodwitch's judgment of skill levels. Either she thought Nikos versus an entire team would be a good challenge for her - which already spoke highly of her skill - or that it would be a challenge for _us._

And that was by far the more frightening option.

"Guys, I think we should all advance at the same time and attack simultaneously from different directions. We have the numerical advantage, so let's not give her one on one or even two on one looks," I suggested, ignoring Sky's insult.

"Yeah, right," mocked Sky. "Listen. You clearly haven't been doing this for long, so why don't you let me take care of the planning?"

"And what do you suggest Sky?" I shot back, switching to throw with the other hand.

The grey armor clad student shrugged. "It's not dust science. No plan needed. We just go in and attack. I don't care how good she thinks she is, there's four of us."

"Okay. So we go in and attack _at the same time._ It's basically what you're proposing, right? Just with a little more detail."

"Whatever Glenny," he waved dismissively.

"Screw it," I grunted as I whipped the ball as hard as I could. It pinged of the wall and rocketed back at me, rippling the metallic mesh as I plucked it deftly from the air. "It's on your head then."

"On my head? No, you're the leader Foray."

"Oh how I wish that was true," I muttered, locking the rubber ball back in my locker and loading the weapon with dust rounds. I had no fancy ammo carrier, so I just tossed a few more shots into my pockets and called it good. "So we doing this or what boys?"

"Fuck yeah!" cheered Dove.

"Team GRBL, roll out."

Sky visibly winced. "Shut the fuck up, Foray."

And on that supportive note we left the locker room to meet our maker.

That… wasn't a great use of that particular literary device, was it? 'Meet our maker' kinda implies that Pyrrha was our mother. Yeah, no. I meant it more like a come to Jesus moment.

Like, we were going to see god.

Because we were going to get absolutely murdered.

In case you weren't catching my drift.

Lining up across from Pyrrha, my insides were absolutely coiling and writhing in familiar snakes. The nervous buzz lit up my stomach and my breathing came much faster than normal, my body beginning to flood me with Adrenalin and pump extra oxygen into my blood. It put me in a weird headspace where I was preparing for the rush of beginning. And make no mistake, it was a rush.

Once you began and started taking action, the nervous buzz just disappeared and it was all action and reaction. There was a feeling of fluidity; some sort of purity in pitting yourself against another person in competition. I had grown to love the feeling in contact sports, but the intensive physical sparring was just a different level. The high you got from winning a battle…

I don't know. I'm probably not doing it justice. But damn, dude. Even if I was more keyed up than usual I just wanted to get it _going_. And after the usual introductory spiel by Ms. Goodwitch, which went something along the lines of don't kill each other or I'll kill you, we did.

My team rushed forward in a disorganized mob, separating themselves out. Russel, the fastest on foot, pulled into the lead and launched himself into a decent imitation of the Tasmanian devil. Pyrrha just stepped into the attack and backhanded him halfway across the stage with her shield.

It was as efficient as it was brutally effective. Looking back on it I had no doubt that even had Pyrrha been armed with nothing but a butter knife and a garbage can lid she could have finessed the hell out of Russel. But she saw there were more opponents incoming. She needed to act quickly, better her odds, and give herself some breathing room. And so she did, just like that.

Surprisingly it was Sky that reached her second, planting his long legs and using his momentum to whip the halberd into a devastating arc that would have split even the mighty Peter Port in half.

It never stood a chance of connecting.

With all the grace of an acrobat she launched herself skyward, twisting into a corkscrew over the path of the bladed pole. She kicked out at it as it passed under her, driving the point into the ground and causing Sky to overbalance massively. Finishing the move she used her momentum to slash powerfully across his chest with her sword.

I hadn't rushed straight in like my teammates, but had instead flanked around to get a better angle. The shotgun form snapped up, and I took advantage of her distraction and acrobatics to squeeze off a shot.

Only to watch, incredulous, as Pyrrha curled up behind her shield. There was an enormous crash that sounded like someone had dropped a gong from four stories high and she rocked a little under the impact, but I had done no damage to her aura _at_ _all_.

In the one single movement she had put Sky off balance, delivered a punishing blow, and blocked my shot without seeming to have looked at me once.

That's what they call a tone setter, boys.

Sure enough, Pyrrha dictated the next three minutes of the fight and we only once touched her in a moment of accidental teamwork. Simultaneously I had fired a blast at her feet while Sky stabbed at her from the front and Dove slashed from behind. In one of the most astonishing feats I had ever seen she went airborne again to dodge my shot, used one foot to deflect the the thrust, and caught Dove's sword in her bare hand.

The force of the strike rotated her back around so she could land on her feet. She thrust the point of her spear into Dove's sternum and I could hear the _wumph_ of breath leaving his body from thirty feet away. The hand that gripped his sword then flew out to catch her shield, which had just returned from bouncing off of Russel's face.

The total damages? Six percent off her aura. That's it. Six measly percent when we were fighting her four on one.

It was just impossible to land a blow. If she was fighting Dove or Russel, she would use her spear to give her a massive reach advantage. If she was fighting Sky, she would use her sword and jam herself in close to make his weapon unwieldy. And for me? Well, she would use the rifle form to keep me at bay and prevent me from getting a clean shot as often as possible.

To top all that off, she was incredibly efficient in working to place herself in positions where she only ever had to fight two of us at a time. Coincidently, she also put my teammates between herself and my line of fire as often as possible, and failing that her damn shield would always be interposed between her and any harm.

Within a couple minutes it was just me and Pyrrha left standing. This wasn't due to any skill of my own; it was simply that the other three had engaged in direct combat whereas I had hung around the edges and tried to support.

Not that it had done any good. All my teammates were out of aura and I was down to about seventy percent from when one of her rifle rounds had struck me. That's not to say that my teammates were unconscious, mind you. They were still very much conscious and had hopped back up into the stands as they waited for the fight to be over.

"Come on Glenny! Show us how it's done!" jeered Sky.

I ignored him and focusing instead on moving in quickly, sending the last of my ammo to keep her busy while I covered ground. Why in? Well, two reasons really.

One was her rifle. If she kept her distance and decided to peg me with it, there was almost nothing I could do. When practicing with Yang I could catch her rounds most of the time and dodge the rest - but those rounds moved slow as hell. Pyrrha's rifle rounds moved significantly faster and I was nowhere near quick enough to try and do anything about it.

Two, in close was going to be my strength. Well, relatively. If we fought hand to hand that would be my strength. But the closer I could get the better my chances would be. My odds of lasting thirty seconds would go up from zero to twenty percent.

 _Why did dust rounds move so slowly, anyway?_

Question for later. Right now I had a bigger problem.

As I closed in Pyrrha I transitioned my weapon into its lacrosse stick form just in time to meet a thrust from her spear. I instinctively tried to capture the head like it was a lacrosse ball, which was a stupid, stupid move. Attempting to stop a heavy, razor sharp weapon with a metallic mesh was never going to happen.

But sometimes it's better to be lucky than good. The long triangular blade tore through the mesh and speared me in the side, my aura flaring up around the impact. It was a sledgehammer blow that came close to winding me.

As she withdrew I twisted my stick in a vain attempt to trap her spear. With that, the frayed and broken strands got locked into the small crevices and seams of the mecha-shift weapon and effectively glued them together.

The unexpected jerk almost yanked the stick out of my hand, but I clamped down tightly and hung on for dear life.

Pyrrha, to her credit, wasted little time in trying to free her spear. What she realized was that while her primary weapon was out of the fight, mine was too; and where I had no backup to fall upon, she still possessed a large metal disk.

So what did she do? Did she use the flat outside to knock me back like she did with Russel at the beginning? No. She straight up punched me with it. The metal rim thudded into my jaw, shattering the remains of my aura and dropping me to the ground.

And so ended the tale of team GRBL. They were all dispatched by a single warrior in but a few minutes. Their leader, last to go, was now flat on his rear, dazed and disheartened.

To be fair though I wasn't really that disheartened about the loss itself. I had figured it was going to go that way from the opening attacks. What I was pissed about was that Dove had done a small amount of damage to Pyrrha. God almighty, I could already hear him bragging about it incessantly for the next week at least.

"I'm sorry," apologized the angel of death, extending a hand to help me up.

I took it and was hauled to my feet. I staggered drunkenly for a step or two until Pyrrha got a firm hold and steadied me. Pyrrha was earning her assisting the elderly badge and my team was laughing at me for it, but Glynda Goodwitch put a stop to that very quickly.

"Team GRBL? What _exactly_ is it that you find so amusing?"

Their laughter died an ugly death, and they found a way to look anywhere - at their feet, the walls, their weapons - anywhere but at me or the headmistress. The silence did not impress her, however.

"I did not find your battlefield performance at all as funny as you did. Regardless of the skill of the opposition, a four on one battle should not look anything like the lopsided sham I just witnessed. I would like to see all of you in my office at four o'clock. If you have any legitimate conflicts, come talk to me after class. Is that clear?"

All of us nodded and assented quietly, embarrassed at how we had performed. Once satisfied that her message had been received she adjusted her glasses and directed her gaze to Pyrrha.

"Congratulations, Miss Nikos. You should have no problems qualifying for the Vytal Festival. You continue to consistently demonstrate excellent battlefield awareness and exceptional positioning." Ms. Goodwitch turned to the class. "I would like everyone to take note as to how she turned their numbers against them. Miss Nikos put herself in positions that caused the members of team GRBL to get in their own way. This is something that I expect you all will learn in due time. The counter to this is, of course, _awareness_ and _strategy_ on the part of the attackers. Now, we do have time for one more match today. Perhaps Miss Belladonna could-"

"I'll do it."

Even in my half addled state I tried to crank my head around to look at the speaker. This of course produced a sharp twinge of pain in my neck, but everyone, myself included, wanted to see who had the absolute stones to interrupt Goodwitch in the middle of her class. All eyes soon settled on a roguish grin and windswept silver hair.

"Mercury, is it?" the teacher asked. "Very well. Let me see-"

"Actually, I'd like to fight her," said Mercury, gesturing to Pyrrha.

There was an audible gasp. Interrupting twice and making demands? This stranger must have had a death wish. These things were just not done in the presence of Headmistress Goodwitch.

"Miss Nikos has just finished a match. I suggest you find a different opponent." Her tone brokered no argument.

"I'd be more than happy to oblige," Pyrrha replied as she helped lower me into a seat next to Jaune.

"Thank you for your generosity, Miss Nikos, but he will simply have to wait for another time. Miss Xiao-Long, would you be so kind?"

"Hell yeah!" cheered Yang, bouncing to her feet. "You got a match!" She rushed off to grab her weapons as Mercury sauntered down to the arena looking a little disappointed.

"Are you okay?" asked Pyrrha worriedly.

I almost had to laugh at the change in her. While she was fighting she was a confident and bold Amazonian goddess. Off the arena floor however, she would worry, dither, and apologize like a helicopter mom with low self-esteem.

"I'm fine," I assured her. "Mostly. My teeth are aching, half my face is numb, and it hurts to turn my head more than five degrees, but at least I don't need dental work."

"I'm sorry," she apologized again.

"S'fine. Nothing to apologize for. We were in a match and you did what you needed to. Besides, that'll teach me not to think of your shield as an offensive weapon," I chuckled ruefully.

"Yeah, that was an eye opener for me too," chirped Jaune. "I mean, I carry a shield and I didn't think about it either."

"Learn from my mistakes," I groaned. "Sometimes I feel like I'm getting the hang of things and then I fight Yang or Pyrrha going full tilt and I feel like I'm going nowhere at all."

"That just about sums it up."

Jaune and I grinned at each other. The two worst being tutored by the two best. Honestly, we shared a lot in common.

"Yang and I have been practicing for most of our lives. You two are doing very well for how short a time you've been training. You should be proud of how far you've come," Pyrrha encouraged us.

"Thanks mom," I joked, causing the Mistrali champion to flush red. "But maybe at some point it might be good for us to all get together for a little training session. Jaune and I can get some looks at fighting different weapons and styles. I know that's an area where I'm sorely lacking, anyway."

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind that at all." Jaune scratched the back of his head thoughtfully. "You and I could even spar together for the extra practice."

"Damn straight." We bumped fists together in solidarity.

"You could even practice with me!" cheered Nora from the other side of Jaune.

"No!" Jaune and I chorused immediately.

Nora's face scrunched into a pout, arms crossing under her breasts. "Why not?"

"Because I'd rather not be identified by my dental records when I die," I deadpanned.

Jaune nodded vehemently, his face beginning to regain some color after the initial shock. "You're not exactly… the best… at holding back."

"Fine," she grumbled.

I nodded at the tangle of weapons that laid by our feet. "Besides, first order of business is getting Ruby to separate those two."

A particularly loud roar dragged our attention from the conversation to the fight between Mercury and Yang. Currently they were a blur of fists and feet, locked into a brilliant display of martial arts. I was barely keeping up and I trained with Yang almost on the daily. As they progressed I decided to study the way Mercury fought - just for future reference.

He seemed to use a style that heavily centered around kicking. If I had to compare it to something it would be some crazy blend of taekwondo and capoeira accentuated by guns in the heels of his boots. He primarily used sweeping, scything strokes to strike and snap kicks to fire off the guns.

The big wheeling strikes I was confident I could deal with, or at least avoid. Blows like that were powerful but took a long time to get from point A to B. The guns, fast kicks, and quick footwork I was less certain about.

 _And he chains it all together so fluidly and effortlessly you don't really have time to deal with one before the other is cocked and coming._

"Nasty," breathed Jaune.

"I know." I pointed at the aura meters. "He's giving Yang a run for her money."

"No, your face Glen. You've already got a nasty bruise on your jaw. All… purpley. And a little red too."

"I'm sorry," called Pyrrha.

"Nothing to forgive," I repeated, slowly being conditioned into such a response. "I have a feeling I'm going to suffer greater pains at the hands of Goodwitch later."

"Why did she ask for you as well?" Jaune wondered aloud.

I watched glumly as Yang activated her terminator eyes and put an end to the fight and the class. "I don't know exactly. But I'll be able to tell you soon enough."

Well, soon enough wasn't really all that soon. First I had to make it through Professor Peach's class, which became a challenge in and of itself. It just so happened that my injury coincided with the lecture on hematoma and internal bleeding. I was summoned to the front and used as an example of what such bruising might look like. Why use PowerPoint when you had such a prime specimen in front of you?

"Like this," Peach had said, tilting my head to catch the light better. "Except it will often be over a significantly larger area and won't look like an imprint of whatever he got hit in the face with."

That, combined with the stiffness that got worse the farther I was removed from my fight, didn't exactly put me in a brilliant mood by the time I piled into the Headmistress' office with the rest of my team. The office was well organized and minimalistic, as befit the strict teacher.

We all just stood and fidgeted quietly, not wanting to broach the subject of our impending lecture and risk inviting more wrath upon ourselves. The only noise was a ballpoint pen scratching itself across an essay as she finished her grading. Once she had completed it she set the papers aside in a tray and stared us down.

"You all know why you're here, yes?"

"Detention? Ow!" Dove rubbed the side of his head where Sky had smacked him,

"Mister Lark!"

"Sorry." He quailed under her gaze for a moment, managing to appear actually ashamed of himself.

"No, to answer your question Mister Bronzewing, you will not be serving a detention. None of you have broken an official school rule." An audible sigh of relief came from all involved. "But I did find your performance and attitudes today disappointing in the extreme. The three of you especially have been training for far too long to be acting like this anymore."

"But…" began Sky, carefully choosing his words. "Wouldn't that be the responsibility of the leader? Our performance?"

The Headmistress' eyes narrowed, and she let Sky squirm in silence for a moment. "I would be very careful playing games with me, Mister Lark."

"I'm not playing games, Ms. Goodwitch."

"Do you take me for a fool, Mister Lark?"

Shy shook his head quickly. "No Ms. Goodwitch."

"Behavior trumps everything. Do you know what that means?"

Silence followed the question, Sky either unwilling or unable to respond. I couldn't help a smug smile from spreading across my face at that, but I wiped it off quickly as the Headmistress' eyes flicked to me.

"Think on it then, Mister Lark. May I continue now? Unless anyone has any more objections?"

No one dared take her up on her offer.

"Very well. This team is, if I am going to be frank, a disgrace."

There were several flinches at that, as well as bowing of heads. I knew that she wasn't really talking to me, but even so I had to bite my young to keep from taking it personally.

"How long have you three been training for this? Six years now? And you've learned what being a hunter is all about, yes? It is nothing to do with the power, or status, or wealth that come with such a position. It is about preventing lives from being wiped off the face of Remnant. Saving people, and allowing humanity to hold onto islands of light in a sea of darkness. Do you understand this?"

"Yes, Ms. Goodwitch," we chorused.

"Do you? Then why would you mock your teammate instead of encouraging him? Laugh at his injury?"

Silence. Absolute ashamed silence.

"Why would you give such a halfhearted effort to defeat your opponent? There is such a thing as evil in the world. If someone meant harm to a town or kill an official and you were called upon to stop them, not only would you be dead now but the people you were charged with protecting would be too.

"Behavior trumps everything, gentlemen. I know you all have had your differences. Frankly, I could care less whether you become friends or not. In fact, in this line of work, you will often have to work with people you do not get along with personally. All I expect is you complete your tasks to the best of your ability. Am I clear?"

"Yes Ms. Goodwitch."

She nodded. "Very well. I expect to see improvements the next time I see you or we will be having a longer talk. You are free to go. Except you, Glen. I would like to speak with you a minute longer."

"Yes ma'am," I said.

The others filed out without complaint, which was a little surprising to me. No shoulder bumps, dirty looks, or whispered threats. I guess Glynda Goodwitch's little speech had a greater impact than I thought - that, or they just wanted to avoid another lecture by doing so in her hearing.

 _One of those things I'll have to find out later, I suppose_.

As the door closed behind me I stood there and waited for the telling-off to continue. Instead she sighed and sat back in her chair, gesturing for me to take a seat across from her. Slowly I lowered myself down into the furniture, unsure of what was going to happen next.

"That's quite the bruise," she said.

I grinned wanly and then winced as the expression tugged at my face. "So I've been told. Peach even used me as an example for her class."

Ms. Goodwitch gave a half-smile back, which set me at ease. "Did she now?"

"Yes ma'am. It'll be a good lesson to me. I'm trying to work out getting some training against different weapons and styles already."

"That's admirable, Glen. I hope you know most of what I said was not directed at you, though you would do well to learn from it."

 _Wow. Almost a smile, my first name, and a clarification. Truly the heavens have opened and blessed me with this moment._

"Yes ma'am."

Ms. Goodwitch clicked on a small electric kettle behind her and opened a drawer in her desk, pulling out a tin and a two small cups. "You knew what I was talking about in regards to actions, don't you Glen?"

 _So I guess that little smirk wasn't missed after all._

"Yes ma'am." She gestured for me to continue as she selected a bag of tea from the tin, so I did. "You're just saying that the ultimate determination of what people value and believe is what they act on, not what they say."

"Precisely. Glen, you have pleasantly surprised me."

I preened silently under the praise. I wasn't going to admit it, but having my ego stroked was enjoyable particularly after the rest of my team had been put on blast. Now I wasn't going to ask her to keep going, but… it'd be nice if she kept going.

"Thank you ma'am."

"You're doing well in Port and Oobleck's class, I notice," she continued. "All of that is new information, isn't it?"

I shrugged. "Sure, but most of it is just rote memorization. And then for Oobleck's class I have learned enough of the, uhhh… broad strokes I guess, of history that I can make connections for meaningful learning."

"Interesting. What about Professor Peach's class?"

"I've been over most of it before, so it's pretty easy. I find the applications fascinating though. And potentially very useful."

"And my class?"

"Aahhh…" I hesitated, putting my diplomacy to the test. "It's harder than the others, for sure. But it's also because it's… built around cumulative learning."

"Yes. Most of the students here have been training in combat since they were in the age range of ten to twelve. That puts you at a significant disadvantage." A soft whistle began to emanate from the kettle and steam began curling from the spout, signifying that it was beginning to boil. "Don't think I haven't noticed the improvements you've made and the effort you have put in. But it will take much more than that to defeat a hunter trained opponent."

"Would Pyrrha count?" I joked.

Goodwitch did not reply immediately, instead taking the kettle from its stand and poured hot water into one cup. "Would you like some tea, Glen?"

I didn't really want any tea. Well, not hot tea anyway. If it were iced tea though… that would be a different story. But she already had gotten the second cup out, so I felt it was polite to accept.

"Yes please."

She poured the second cup carefully and slid it towards me. "Miss Nikos is a prodigy of her generation as far as her combat abilities are concerned. She is already on the level of many of the fourth year students we would graduate in that regard. My thoughts were more in line with Roman Torchwick."

"He has been known to pop up from time to time," I joked.

The teacher's emerald eyes met my hazel, and seemed to look through me. "And you have met him twice now."

"Not on purpose, but I suppose that's a moot point."

"It is. Of more concern to me is that on both occasions you nearly were killed."

"I… yeah. Yeah, I was. But the second one wasn't so bad, really. The doctors said I probably just passed out because of the exertion, you know? I probably would have recovered - enough to be conscious again, anyway," I said.

"Were you scared?"

"I… hmm."

The tea in my cup radiated out in blonde tendrils, diffusing into the hot water as I honestly thought about the question. What was it like? How did I explain it? Would I explain it?

"Glen, I do serve as the school's counselor from time to time. Anything we talk about would be confidential, of course - but if you do not wish to talk you do not have to," she said kindly.

I shook my head. "No, no. It's not that. It's just… I needed a second to consider the question. I'll do my best to explain it. It's not that I wasn't scared while it was happening. I was scared, but it… it didn't really matter then," I explained. "Not while everything was going on. Like in the store, I needed to… direct Coco and Velvet to take care of my leg so I wouldn't bleed out in a few minutes. And then at the docks it was a whirlwind from trying to fight Torchwick to taking care of Blake to taking care of myself. My fear was secondary because there were things I needed to do that mattered more and panic would just cloud my judgment. Does that make sense?"

"It does." Ms. Goodwitch took a sip from her tea as she waited for me to continue.

"Okay. So I'm not really scared when it's happening. But afterwards I am. After I got shot in the convenience store I was terrified. I just kept thinking of what might have happened, how I could have bled out on that floor, or how I could have been shot somewhere else. I would get really startled by loud noises for a while after and I couldn't deal with a pistol. And I was scared after this one too, but… I don't know. It wasn't the same."

"It wasn't the same? How so?"

"I dunno. I was… I guess it would have to do with the fact that I had more control over the situation. Which, I don't know… it created more stress in the moment, I guess, because my decisions really mattered. But afterwards… sure I realized things might have gone differently, but I still had control. I chose and I chose well enough to survive, which was some kind of comfort I guess."

"And how was that different the first time?"

I disguised my consideration with a sip of the tea. It had steeped well enough by this point, and I was pleasantly surprised by the flavor. It was some kind of green tea and citrus, and heavy on the citrus.

 _This would make a really good iced tea, actually,_ part of my mind noted idly.

"I guess there's a certain terror that comes with helplessness," I said. It was an interesting experience to voice my thoughts like this instead of mulling it over in my mind to come up with my definitive answer first. "I couldn't do anything. When he was holding me hostage I was more or less at his mercy. That was the part that really terrified me afterwards. Not really the bleeding out, I don't think. But not doing anything, not being able to do anything, and then even when I tried it still didn't really make a difference. Helplessness is terrifying- to me, at least."

Ms. Goodwitch considered my response carefully. Unconsciously I found myself mimicking her as she drank from her cup. "Though from what I hear, you were at his mercy at the docks again. Why did that not scare you the same way this did?"

The tips of my mouth moved downwards as I thought about it. "I guess… huh, I don't know. Huh." My frown only deepened as I considered the issue that had been presented me. Maybe I had been wrong in my original assessment. Or maybe there was something else that I hadn't considered yet.

"But I did choose it," I said finally.

"In what way?"

"I could have ran away when Blake first went after him. I could have ran away halfway through the fight or when she got knocked out. But I made the choice to stay. And even if that choice ended up costing me my life, at least it was mine to make." I grinned for a second. "Doesn't mean it wasn't a stupid decision. But it's a far cry from being helpless."

"You're certainly insightful Glen."

"I blame my mother, naturally."

Her lips quirked up slightly at my immediate retort. "Naturally. And for the record, I do not believe that your choice to aid Miss Belladonna was a stupid one. A courageous one, maybe, bold at the worst. Your decision to follow her into the docks in the first place hunting criminals, however…"

My hands came up defensively. "To be fair though, I thought the likelihood of the White Fang robbing the shipment right in front of us that one night was impossibly low. And then for it to not just be some White Fang grunts, but Roman Torchwick as well?" I sighed heavily. "That was just bad luck."

"Perhaps. But do you think that you are acting a little more recklessly than you might otherwise?"

"More recklessly? I don't… I'm not sure. I haven't thought about that really." One of my hands idly scratched at the scruff on my chin. "I don't know. It's possible."

She flipped open a small gold pocket watch on her desk and stared at the hands for a second before clicking it shut. "There are two things that you might bear in mind then, Glen. One is that aura does not give you carte blanche to take greater risks. No amount of aura can protect one from foolish decisions made because of a false confidence. Does this make sense?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Secondly, you do know of the situation you are in, correct? The more exposure you are given, the higher the possibility of you being discovered by those who might wish you, or all of Remnant for that matter, ill. And the latter is of particular concern to me." Her face twisted into annoyance. "It is partially for this reason as well that I disagreed with Ozpin's desire to place you on a team, but that is neither here nor there. What's done is done and we will simply have to make the best of it."

I nodded briefly, her words seeming to crack open a tap that trickled cool water into my stomach. "Yes ma'am."

The worry on my face must have shown however, and Glynda's countenance softened a hair. "We will do our best to keep you safe and prepare you. I just want to caution you to take more care and consider the consequences of your actions."

"Yes ma'am. I understand."

"Behavior trumps everything, Mister Foray. Now, I apologize to cut this short, but I must be off for a meeting. I appreciate you taking the time to talk with me." She stood, gathering up a folder and her riding crop as she ushered me out the door.

"No problem. Have a good day, Ms. Goodwitch," I waved.

"Good day to you, Mister Foray." With that she stalked off, leaving me standing on my own.

 _And I didn't even finish my tea,_ I thought morosely. _I didn't even learn what kind it was._

Shrugging off my disappointment, I began the trek back to my dorm. Idly I pulled out my scroll and noted I had three missed calls from Yang. Flicking off the silent mode (I had just been in class after all, and I didn't want it going off) I decided to call back to see what all the fuss was about.

The scroll rang through and was sent straight to voicemail, so I left a short message asking what was going on.

 _Huh. Well, if it's important I suppose she'll call back soon. Right?_

* * *

 **A/N: Not the most substantive chapter, perhaps, and not really the most plot driven - though once again little bits and pieces are shifting. Still, at least the fight with Pyrrha was fun to write.**

 **Partially though, I wanted to do a little reflection over Glen's recent turmoil. Some guest scrub who couldn't be bothered to ID himself (read in the facetious tone, please) made what I thought was a good point about there being a lack of cool down and reflection / reaction to the latest incident. So, I did a little of that here - I hope it's okay for essentially an add-on. As for Blake being callous, well, yes? And no. I have at least thought that one out a little - which is probably my default state.**

 **Me: "I've thought it out a little."**

 **Attentive readers: "Not a lot?"**

 **Me: "Nope, but it sounds good right now so I'm going to commit myself to it."**

 ***2 Chapters Later***

 **Also Me: "Maybe I shoulda thought that one out a bit more. Sheeeeeeeet. Oh well, let's work with it."**

 **Attentive readers: "Sumbitch."**

 **I swear even Le MAO's Colt probably has a more well thought-out plan than I do. But that's what makes my story so organic right? Right. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.**

 **But in the continuing endeavor to improve my writing I wanted to give myself a little space to, well, think about it, and consider perhaps getting someone to beta it. Maybe help me before I make those mistakes that are probably a result of my impatience to keep pushing the story forward. So, as I am an actual scrub in regards to this website, I'm open to thoughts and suggestions.**

 **Anyway, hope you guys are doing well. Catch you on the flip side!**


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